


SYNESIRIS Book 1: 内部 ~ NAIBU

by Haruka_Malayo



Series: pop'n music SYNESIRIS [1]
Category: Pop'n Music (Game)
Genre: Concerts, Gay, Lesbian Character, Memory Loss, Multi, Music, Original Character(s), Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Saving the World, Self Insert With Style, Self-Insert, Singing, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-04
Updated: 2019-06-09
Packaged: 2019-11-09 02:16:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 30
Words: 32,810
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17992943
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Haruka_Malayo/pseuds/Haruka_Malayo
Summary: The pop'n World is a world of peace and tranquility, where nobody is in need of want and every day is bright and shining. Guarded by its God - MZD - and His two assistants, Mimi and Nyami, everything is perfect at all times...almost too perfect. During the year's biggest outdoor concert, a star falls from the heavens. Who is this mysterious lion girl, why doesn't she remember anything, and why does the world suddenly need saved?





	1. quick master

**Author's Note:**

> Hooooooooooly heck, looks like I'm finally here! Welcome to the beginning of my multi-book pop'n and Bemani fanfiction, SYNESIRIS! These fandoms are GROSSLY overlooked when it comes to their fanworks, and while I doubt this fits, I hope this helps at least a little. Let me explain -- this is definitely a Mary Sue, I'm up-front with that. But it's a story that means the world to me, that I've worked very hard on. Please understand that going in, that I'm sure not everybody's going to like it, and that's okay. If you do like it, please let me know!  
> Tags for Book 1 are ONLY for Book 1.  
> Comments and kudos are appreciated, as is con-crit. Please be GENTLE with your con-crit because I have context-processing issues. The kinder you can be, the better.  
> Flames will be fed to my ghost fiancé (who keeps forgetting to eat).  
> I don't have a ko-fi or a Patreon of any substance, so if you somehow want to support me monetarily, please go listen to my music on Spotify or Apple Music. Shouldn't be that hard to find me, ultimately.  
> Above all, thank you for reading, and for God's sake, don't take this or anything too seriously.

 

* * *

 

 

Welcome.

I’ve been expecting you.

You have come to hear Me speak, have you not? To hear the tale for yourself? All have heard the rumors, but few actually know of the truth. There are those who have lived it, and then those who simply hear the whispers of what occurred. I am the only one who keeps the story of the worlds, how they were changed, and how they were all aligned, forever and finally.

They are My worlds - because I am God, after all.

And these are My words - because I am God, after all.

I shall speak of the story in the tongue you know, to carry the story far and wide. As discrepancies arise, I shall do My best to explain them to you. They who have ears to hear, let them hear. Those who hear the story fully to its conclusion will know the truth, and the truth shall set them free. There are also those who wish to listen but do not truly hear or understand. They will listen to My story, but they will not absorb it and it will not change their lives. This is permissible, as those without ears will find their own paths separate from this one. Whatever you wish to believe about this story, these worlds, or these characters, know that I still tell the truth as I have seen it. While I am God, I cannot stop you from believing what you wish to believe.

Yet if you have been chosen to hear, listen carefully, as the tale I am about to tell is the new truth, the radiance by which the rest of eternity will be determined.  
  


* * *

  
Before I begin, I suppose it would be kind of Me to explain this world.

I have many names. For every world I create, it seems I receive a new name. I understand and accept all of these names, but My story centers around one particular world. In that world, I am called MZD, the middle letter pronounced in full. I would appreciate it if you called Me as such.

They say that long ago, I was created at the beginning with the first world. From that world, the Blessed Trinity spoke to Me. Where would You like to go? What would You like to see? I looked at the world the Trinity had made, which was good and pleasing and perfect, as all worlds should be. But I noticed there was something missing. Color, I said. Give Me color, and give Me as much color as this world is devoid of.

From the disc jockey’s darkness came a tree of life, with leaves every hue imaginable, growing on a grassy hill. And the fruit of the tree came to life, with eyes and simple wills that begged for one destiny: to be used, to be embraced. A town sprang up around the Tree, and a great river surrounded the town on every side, leading to the wide blue sea.

It was at this time that the Blessed Trinity told Me to create the first being to live in this world. I thought it unfair that I was brought to life alone, so I created two, My dual keepers of this world. The lively fruits made a strange sound when touched, so the world was christened “pop’n Town.” And when I brought the music of My home world to pop’n Town, they came together in a perfect mix of music and color that inspired My creativity even further. While pop’n music is not the only world I have created, it is My first and therefore My original light.

While working together with the Blessed Trinity, we created many more worlds of sound, many people to live in them, and many songs to be sung and played. We strove to share these worlds with as many as we could find. Some worlds, such as My pop’n music, were accepted by others with loving arms. Others were shunned and quietly folded into the fabric of nonexistence. Still, the light lived on in every fragment of fabric created.

As I interacted with those in pop’n World, I noticed that each person was beautiful in their creation, but lacked the free will to make their own decisions. Against the will of the Blessed Trinity, I created a world where free will was possible. Without warning, the pop’n fruits began to disappear from My world and went to this new world of Lapistoria, and I enlisted the help of four special individuals to retrieve them. While Lapistoria was closed soon after, unable to be reached by anybody except for Myself, pop’n music was never the same again. It became a little more detailed, a little more dramatic, as each character realized that their world was no longer the utopia it once had been. Perhaps they didn’t have a reason for being before...but now they did. This caused unnecessary drama and rifts between friends and foes alike.

At the same time, I noticed a new threat not only to pop’n music, but to all of the worlds I had created. This threat was too elusive for Me to keep up with on My own, and so I told My four friends from before about the threat and told them to keep their senses ready. I had no clue what was next to happen, or how it would change all of the worlds forever, but now I understand why these events had to take place. For where one story ends, a new one always begins.

Our story begins in pop’n Town, in pop’n music. However, I was not present at this point in this story. Therefore, I will introduce My dual gatekeepers of pop’n music, in the hope that you will recognize them and ultimately realize their truth. I am sure you have seen the rabbit girl and the cat girl several times before, heard of their many adventures.

The rabbit girl is Mimi. Inhabitants of pop’n music do not have last names, so she is the only Mimi in existence there. Mimi is called as such because of her long rabbit ears -- she is not human, nor is she exactly a rabbit, but is somewhere in between. Mimi has always looked the same, though as Lapistoria had brought more detail to the world, she has become more detailed as well.

Mimi is an imaginative girl whose age stays the same forever. She was created to enjoy colorful things in life, such as crayons, roller coasters, and fun foods -- though she dislikes tomato juice. She also enjoys shopping and looking at accessories. Much like real life animals, Mimi is captivated by anything that shines or sparkles.

No matter where Mimi goes, she is always seen with her cat counterpart, Nyami. Nyami is the other gatekeeper to pop’n music. Both gatekeepers live together in the center of town and are very similar in how they act.

Nyami is so named because of the cat ears on her head. While Mimi often acts softer and more passive, Nyami is louder and the more tomboyish of the pair. She also speaks faster than Mimi, and often peppers the ends of her sentences with a meow. They both act as television presenters and radio personalities in the pop’n music world. She also enjoys things that sparkle but dislikes coffee.

Both Mimi and Nyami will be good frames of reference for the story I am about to tell. If you find yourself losing track of where you are in the beginning, simply look for them. They are, after all, My chosen ones.

Now, let us start at the beginning. It is a very good place to start.

 


	2. UNLIMITED

There are many performance venues in pop’n Town, and The Shining Polaris is the most massive of them all.

The lights went down on a Saturday night in March, and the crowd roared as the huge screens on stage came to life. Standing in perfect formation in the center of the stage were the three dancers of pop’n Town: Judy, Mary, and Aya. As their leader, the blonde Judy stood in the center, with the African Mary on her right and the Asian Aya on her left, posing in their flared jeans and crop tops. The intro began, and they posed with the beat, then side-stepping into a fast-paced _parapara_ routine. The audience’s front rows copied the dance moves, performers and spectators becoming one.

With a blast of light and fog, a short blonde man with a keytar played the opening synths. His much younger counterpart held down the bass line on his own keytar. And in the center was a man -- a fairy? -- with a microphone and a stage outfit to die for. The main line began, and he danced with Judy and the others before launching into the melody.

_Welcome to the broken low! Welcome to the famous disco live!_   
_Come on lady, come and go, come on lady, get me once and right!_   
_Not a danger, not a blacky stranger_   
_Rock it - rock it - knock to my door I'll open_   
_Speak my name now, speak if it you know how_   
_Fly to me, get ready for it!_

The crowd was lit as they followed the hand movements, in tune with the beat. Polished new LEDs lined the stage, glowing in rainbow colors. Aya did a backflip and spun in a circle, then joined with Mary for a hand jive. Somebody threw a beach ball out into the crowd, and it passed from person to person, moshing over the concertgoers’ heads.

Nyami watched from the back of the crowd, still starstruck by the performer on stage.

The Shining Polaris was standing room only, and the audience area spread out through the middle of pop’n Town to the grand mall, a wide field perfect for picnics or events. In the middle of the grand mall sat the Tree of Life, Nyami's usual seat for these concerts. After every performance, she had used to wait under this same tree, and her beloved had come to meet her. But she had been away from pop’n Town for a while, and now...

“Nyami?” She turned and Mimi was standing behind her, smile on her face, green eyes dancing.

“What?”

Mimi stood next to Nyami and watched the performers sing and dance. Then, “Have you told him yet?”

Nyami’s eyes went to the charismatic lead singer, microphone in one hand, cord in the other. His eyes were closed, bouncing to the beat as the dancers pivoted to the synth run. Everybody else was watching Judy and the other girls, in perfect sync -- but not Nyami.

“I’ll tell him later,” she said over the music.

_Night of fire, you've better better stay_   
_You've better better begin the prayer to play_   
_Night of fire, come over over me_   
_Come over over the top you'll have a night of fire_

With one final pose, the song ended and the crowd went wild. Judy and the other girls moved away from their spots, and the lead singer took center stage. “Thank you all for coming out tonight! We’re gonna sing an older song, one of our greatest hits!” And the band started up, and the glowsticks went out, and he began to sing.

_Super overcrowded city, crazy patched-up lights  
Continuous red thermography, mad vision in the traffic jam_

A spin of his red boots revealed just enough skin under his above-knee shorts. Gloves glistened in the stage heat. Ribbons around his collar, pressed just so, danced as he swayed. The keytar solo had the crowd screaming, and he opened his red eyes, looking out over the sea of people. Was she there? She had to be -- she never missed a single one of his concerts, although she had been absent from pop’n Town for some time. Even though he couldn’t see her, he still knew she was there. She was the only one who mattered, and if he could continue singing for her, then this would all be worth it.

He had to welcome her home properly, and then, he would go see her, and she would run away, as she always did. But he would chase her. He always chased her.

_Even now, I feel it overflow  
My throat chokes in the heat, my eyes are only on you --_

The explosion was so loud that it shook the stage. He fell backward, then looked up, pushing a red rabbit ear aside. There was something glittering and glowing in the sky.

Nyami’s eyes went to the sky from her perch under the Tree of Life. “What is -”

“That’s not sanctioned. Let’s go.” Mimi held out her hand to Nyami, who hesitated for just a second, then took it with a smile, both running across the mall to The Shining Polaris and the crowds.

Ice, the younger keytar player, ducked under the stage and away from the explosion. “What is that?”

“Groovy is what it is, man,” Shollkee, the older keytar player, said as he slung her keytar over his shoulder and played an off-key riff.

“It’s not groovy. Isn’t MZD supposed to clear all fireworks displays? Mimi and Nyami didn’t say anything about fireworks tonight.”

“Groovy, man. Groovy.”

The crowds were in chaos, but their cries fell on deaf ears as the singer, microphone forgotten, rose to his feet again. He lifted his eyes to the supernova above The Shining Polaris. This wasn’t fireworks -- there were still several weeks until _hanami_. And MZD - I - wasn’t here to clear the display. Who was doing this?

Well, if you’re wondering, you are right about one thing. I did not clear this “fireworks display.” But I was still aware of it.

Another boom went off, the second one in the middle of the first one, though causing no smoke -- just a glittering ring of light that flashed out over the crowd. The entire supernova faded save for one portion of the star, which twinkled and fell in an arc toward the ground below. Halfway down, it exploded again, sending shimmering stardust over the crowd’s heads.

For a split second, he thought it could be a person, falling from the heavens. When he ran to the front of the stage, he could see it _was_ , falling slow now, floating, less like a star and more like a feather. It was almost as if, when he held out his arms, she fell right into them, gentle, glowing.

The crowd was hushed and all eyes were on him and this strange girl in the white dress, still in his arms. For a moment he thought she was unconscious, then her huge cat ears twitched, and her black eyes opened. She looked up at her captor, short brown hair, worried red eyes, strange rabbit hat designed for the stage. Her own right hand - paw? - reached up toward his face.

“Red...red moon rabbit,” she muttered, and the rest vanished.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Song lyrics from "NIGHT OF FIRE" and "UNLIMITED." Translation of "UNLIMITED" lyrics done by me.


	3. papayapa bossa

pop’n Lounge  
~ The Next Day ~

Nyami downed the rest of her chai. “I still don’t know what the _nyan_ you’re talking about.”

Mimi blew bubbles in her bubble tea. “There are just a few short weeks left before _hanami._ And everybody knows we throw the BEST _hanami_ parties. Every year, when the _sakura_ trees bloom, we invite everybody to bring their own blanket and a food item to share. Then, everybody goes around to the different blankets, eats and drinks, and has a great time seeing people they never get to see!” She looked Nyami in the eye. “It would be horrible if something dramatic got in the way of that.”

“Nothing dramatic is gonna get in the way --”

“Nyami. Have. You. Told. Him. Yet.”

Nyami rolled her eyes. “I’ll tell him, okay? Just stop breathing down my neck about it.”

“Nyami, he’s already come around the house three times since we arrived home. You’ve avoided him every single time.”

“One time, I wasn’t actually home.”

“Yeah, but you were out with Sanae-chan and Rie-chan shopping for accessories while I was stuck at home, doing the logistics work for the season premiere episode of ‘pop’n Today.’” Mimi waved her cup. “Hey, Albireo, can I get a refill?”

“But of course,” Albireo said as he left his cashier and delivered Mimi a new bubble tea. The pop’n Lounge had once been a very popular place to hang out in town, and was once home to a radio show that Judy and her friends hosted. These days, the new kids liked to hang out in internet cafes, but Mimi and Nyami still loved to come to the lounge for bubble tea. At this time of day, Mimi and Nyami were the only two in the lounge.

Which made it perfect for having a sensitive discussion like _this_ one.

“Let’s see,” Mimi said as she swallowed two bubbles, then put her cup down. “The first time you ran into him, you turned tail and ran as fast as you could. The second time, you stared at your feet for five minutes and THEN turned tail and ran as fast as you could. The third time, you weren’t home...on purpose.” She wrinkled her nose. “And technically there’s a fourth time...but you didn’t even get a chance to see him because of all of _that._ ”

It reminded Nyami: the blazing light in the sky, the shocked crowds, the girl who had fallen from the star. Nyami was _supposed_ to talk to him after the concert, but the emergency situation meant they hadn’t even shared two words since then. “Have you heard from MZD yet?”

Mimi shook her head. “I’ve tried calling His house, but you know how He is. Who knows what world He’s in right now?”

“It would be helpful if He were in _this_ one. What was with that massive light, anyway?”

“Definitely not sanctioned. We just have to wait until MZD gets back and ask Him. He knows everything. He _always_ knows everything. But until then, we’re sitting ducks trying to take care of an unconscious catgirl.”

Nyami stared off into space, remembering how it had looked from her vantage point. They had made it halfway through the panicking crowd before she looked up to find a strange girl in _his_ arms. But Judy and the other dancers had made it to Nyami’s beloved before Mimi and Nyami could, Ice and Shollkee had shut down the concert venue, and the rest had been a blur. She still couldn’t get the picture out of her mind, though -- the one she loved catching this girl from the sky --

“Jealous?”

“ _Nya!_ ~” Nyami’s face flushed and she turned away. “Don’t embarrass me!”

“I’m not.” Nyami thought Mimi sounded irritated, but when she looked up she noticed Mimi was sad. The worry was evident in her voice. “You still like him, don’t you?”

Nyami held her tongue. When she thought about him, she felt nervous inside, like a million butterflies about to release. “I don’t know.”

Mimi sighed, then took another sip of bubble tea. “Look, one way or another, you still gotta tell him, okay? Nothing’s gonna change until you do.”

“All right, all right, next time I see him, I’ll tell him. Or at least I’ll get closer to telling him. Meanwhile, do we have any updates on this catgirl? There can only be one awesome catgirl in pop’n Town, and that spot is already taken by ME.” Nyami grinned.

_It’s an obvious cover up,_ Mimi thought to herself. After the drama of Lapistoria, Mimi and Nyami had been given a special gift by MZD - an android by the name of Navi, a new friend for them who also was able to pilot a zeppelin. They had used the zeppelin to travel all over pop’n music, properly leaving pop’n Town and Sunny Park behind for the first time in their lives. And after being in one town for so long, being around the world had opened their eyes to wondrous new possibilities and ways of living, ideas that they wanted to bring to pop’n Town. Since then, Mimi had used her journal from her travels to start building plans...and Nyami had mostly gone back to the way she had been before. It was frustrating for Mimi, to say the least.

“If you want to go check on her, you know where to find her. And I might as well come, too. If MZD’s not around to see what’s going on, then as the mascots of this world, we should know and be ready to report it back to Him.”

“It would be helpful if we knew a doctor in this world.”

“We might not know a doctor…” Mimi grinned. “But we do know a dentist.”

 


	4. Marigold

When the catgirl finally woke up, she found herself in a pink bedroom, laying on the bed. Her clothes were unchanged, still only wearing the white dress she had fallen from the sky in. The room was warm, with an extensive vanity, an open closet with luscious outfits spilling out from inside, and copious stuffed animals, once on the bed, now on the floor. The door was cracked, and as she woke up, a tall girl with pink hair in pigtails walked through with a tray full of tea.

“Are you awake?” Her voice was gentle.

The catgirl went to speak, but found no words coming out of her mouth. She looked up at the other girl and nodded, then sat up.

“I brought you tea. Tea makes everything better.” The girl put the tray down and unfolded it so it turned into a table. “Whenever I’m feeling down or sad or lonely, I always make a cup of tea. Then, I drink it, but super slow. In the time it takes me to drink it, I feel better!” She handed the catgirl a glass of green tea. “So drink this, but slow.”

When she did, she found the flavor was familiar, but she couldn’t put a name to it. She tried to respond, but wasn’t sure how to. So she just smiled.

“Is it good?”

The catgirl nodded.

The older, taller girl wrinkled her nose. “Are you unable to talk?”

The catgirl paused, then shook her head.

“Well, that’s okay! I mean, you did fall from the sky and all, so perhaps there’s something holding you back right now. Do you remember that?”

Remember? The catgirl paused. She wasn’t sure she knew the meaning of the word.

“Well, if you don’t, that’s okay, too. Do you have any clue where you are? We’ve never seen you before.”

Another shake of the catgirl’s head.

_Now_ the older girl was so confused, she didn’t know what to say next. “Okay. Well, um…that’s okay, too, I guess. Let’s start from the beginning. Do you have a name?” Silence. “Okay, well, I’m Milk and you’re in pop’n Town. I assume you don’t know where or what that is…” More silence. “Do you like the tea?” This got a nod and another sip.

Milk realized she could still communicate with the girl - she just had to ask yes or no questions. “So you can’t talk, right?” Nod. “Okay. Did you used to talk?” That didn’t get an answer, so Milk left it alone for now. “Do you remember where you came from?” Shake. “Do you remember anything at all? Like, what happened to you before you woke up?”

The catgirl closed her eyes and remembered something bright, then a person with long, red ears. She reached on top of her own head and was somehow surprised to find two big tawny cat ears there. “To be honest, everybody keeps calling you a cat, but with all that golden hair, you look more like a lion.” She looked up at Milk, confused. “Oh, me? Yeah, I’m not a lion! I’m a human. So, Miss Lion, is it okay if I call you that for now?” It didn’t make sense to her, but she nodded.

_Phew._ At least this was starting to make sense to Milk. This was harder than she thought! She wished Mimi and Nyami had been here for this. “Well, drink your tea, Miss Lion, and we’ll go from there.” She motioned to the cup, and Miss Lion drank from it again, the two sitting in silence as Milk sipped her own tea.

Who was this girl? She couldn’t talk, and she didn’t seem like she remembered anything, but Milk could still communicate with her. Well, perhaps if she acted like Miss Lion was brand new to _everything,_ that would help. Mimi and Nyami always handled when new people moved to pop’n Town, but what could Milk start with?

“So, just as a reminder, I’m Milk, and your name for right now is Miss Lion. This is my apartment, where I live. My apartment is located in a town called pop’n Town, part of the Sengoku district in pop’n music. Does all of that make sense?” Miss Lion nodded. “Good! So even though we don’t know who you are, at least you know where you are! And don’t worry. You’re safe here.”

There was a sound from the other room; Milk rose from her seat. “I have to get that, but I’ll be back!”

While she was gone, Miss Lion looked around the room again. Milk was right -- she had no clue how she had gotten here, or who she was at all. But she had the feeling that Milk could be trusted. And the tea was delicious, after all. She had a feeling that there was more to the story, and if she stuck around Milk, she would figure it out. She didn’t quite have the foresight to panic as of yet, which is what I can imagine just about anybody else would have done in this situation.

Milk stuck her head back into her room. “Mimi and Nyami are coming over! Oh -- they’re the ones in charge of this world. They’re gonna help you out a lot!”

And within a few short minutes, Milk’s doorbell rang. She answered it to two smiling faces.

“It’s Mimi!”

“And Nyami - _da nyan_ ~!”

Milk prepared them tea and they sat in her living room, Mimi and Nyami under the _kotatsu_ with Milk and Miss Lion standing nearby. “Any updates?” Mimi asked.

Milk shook her head. “She can respond to questions, but if she existed before now, she has no clue who she is.”

“Well, then, we’ll just treat her like a new inhabitant of pop’n Town! We get those all the time! Do we have a name for her?” Nyami asked.

“I’ve been calling her Miss Lion, and she doesn’t seem to mind. She’s fluffier than you are, Nyami.” This was true; now that Miss Lion was standing, all three could see that her ears really were bigger and fluffier than Nyami’s, with actual fur. Her hands and feet were covered with fur as well, and unlike Mimi nor Nyami, she had a long tail ending in a tawny tuft.

“See, now that you’re awake, I can see the reality of the situation.” Mimi grinned. “You’re adorable!”

Miss Lion tilted her head.

“Well, anyway, we’re glad you’re here! Welcome to pop’n music! I’m Mimi, and that is Nyami, and we can answer any questions you have. But since you can’t talk right now, feel free to point things out or otherwise let us know. How about this! Can you write?”

When Miss Lion was given a pad of paper and a pencil, she began to write strange markings with many lines. “Hmm. That doesn’t look like the writing system we have here,” Nyami said.

“But that’s okay! Not everybody knows how to write, so maybe you can go to school and learn! Anyway, so today is your first full day in pop’n music! Welcome to March 19th!”

“Well, actually, March 18th was, but nobody’s counting-nya.”

“Still, we should show you around town! If you’re going to be living here, you might as well know where everything is! Milk, do you want to come with us?”

“I can!” Milk smiled at Miss Lion. “We’ll teach you everything you need to know.”

 


	5. WORLD COLOR

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A tour of pop'n Town.

Milk lived in downtown pop’n Town, near many other inhabitants of the world and not too far from Mimi and Nyami. She had her own apartment on top of her dentist’s office, next to a bunch of other buildings on Sengoku Street. During the day, she helped clean her friends’ teeth. During the night, she went out with the same friends on the town, hoping to meet the one man whom would sweep her off her feet.

The four walked out onto the busy two-lane city street. There was light and color and sound and energy _everywhere,_ as is expected of pop’n Town. Kids raced with their bikes, telephone poles danced in the spring sunlight, and shops opened their doors, bringing aromas out into the open. Nyami’s mouth immediately watered at the scent of a fish sandwich.

“pop’n Town is a bustling place, but it’s also very peaceful,” Mimi explained. “Everybody goes at their own pace.”

“Yeah, and there are so many things to do here!” Nyami chirped. “No matter what you want to do, you can find it here. There are all sorts of people here who have all sorts of talents! Once you find your special talent, you learn how to share it with the rest of town! We’re really thankful to live in such a land of peace and harmony. I mean, we do have our issues, but we also have a fun way of solving problems.”

“So, Miss Lion, now that you’re here,” Milk said, “you can explore all you want! It’s probably smart to have us with you, but if you’re gonna live here with us, you might as well see what you like and what you don’t like!”

Miss Lion didn’t know how to respond yet, but she smiled and nodded.

“In the meantime, let’s go explore!” Nyami said. “Let’s take the trolley downtown, and then we’ll go further out!”

“Oh, there comes the trolley now!” Mimi flagged down the huge trolley, and she and Nyami hopped on. Milk held hands with Miss Lion and jumped on, making sure they were both on safe. The trolley inside played happy music, and the seats were filled with smiling riders. A schoolgirl got up from her seat as Mimi and Nyami sat nearby.

“Hi, Milk!”

“Oh, hi, Marin! How were the sweets I shared with you?”

“They were so good! I had to share some with Ayumu. She thought the green tea dango were the best!”

“Well, perhaps we should go get some, then.” Milk looked back at Miss Lion. “This is Miss Lion. She’s new to pop’n Town, and she doesn’t say much. But we’re just going around town showing her everything so far. Miss Lion, this is Marin! She’s a second year at Private Bemani Academy’s pop’n Location.”

“Welcome to pop’n Town!” Marin said with a smile. “You’ll have to come listen to our band concert! We’re having one in a couple of weeks at the end of the year, just before _hanami_!”

“Oh, that’s right,” Nyami said. “Miss Lion has to come to _hanami!_ Everybody comes to _hanami_!”

“ _Hanami_.”

They looked back at Miss Lion, whose head tilted. “ _Hanami_?”

Mimi gasped, her eyes wide. “She talked ~nya!” Nyami yelled in surprise, alerting everybody else on the trolley.

“She didn’t say anything at my house,” Milk said. “What an exciting development! Miss Lion can talk!”

“ _Hanami._ ” Her voice was soft, her syllables were slow, but it was there. And then, she looked at Mimi. “Mimi.” And then at Nyami. “Nyami.”

Nyami grinned. “She said my name!”

Milk was excited. “Okay, what else can you say? Can you tell us your own name?”

Silence.

“Aw, man, well, it was worth a shot.”

“Don’t new characters usually arrive in the world knowing their names and what they do?” Nyami whispered to Mimi.

Mimi nodded. “This is a special case. Let’s make sure she’s taken care of.” Then, louder: “How about we get off at the next stop and grab some more sweets? Sundays are for sweets, after all.”

They jumped off at the next stop and walked across the street. A plaza was set up with a fountain in the center. Bikers and pedestrians walked the mall at a leisurely pace. A salaryman with a cat in his bike basket weaved through skateboarders, and an entire group of students was playing basketball in one corner.

Mimi and Marin led their group of six to a small sweets shop in the plaza, decorated with rainbow colors. The door chimed as they walked in. “Hello, Sunny! Hello, Sweets!”

“Oh, Ayumu’s here, too!” Marin called out, waving with her marimba mallets.

There were a few people in the shop, and Ayumu, Marin’s friend, was seated in one corner. Standing beside her was Sunny, the waitress of Nijiiro Sweets Shoppe. Marin sat by Ayumu while Sunny went behind the counter to search for Sweets themselves. Sure enough, the two gingerbread people were in the back room, kneading dough and hand making new sweet foods to hand out at their store.

“Green tea _dango_ and a strawberry _mochi_ for Ayumu and Marin,” Sunny said, putting the plate in front of them. “How’s your band practice going?”

“All of the trumpets are in tune,” Ayumu said with a smile and a ‘thank you.’ “Still waiting?”

“I am. It gets hard sometimes, but being friends with all of you lessens the pain.” Sunny’s brother was overseas, and he was not home often. “I hope he comes home soon.” She then went to the other table. “And here we have...milk tea for Milk, red bean dango for Mimi and Nyami, and a vanilla mochi for…”

“Miss Lion,” Mimi said in between her first bite of _dango._

“Miss Lion. It’s nice to meet you.”

“Nyami,” Miss Lion replied, looking up at Sunny’s hat. The way it folded looked like Nyami’s cat ears. She looked at Ayumu. “Nyami.” But they did not understand, and they kept talking about what they wished to talk about, leaving Miss Lion’s curiosities in the breeze.

After they were done, Mimi turned to Nyami. “We should take her now.”

“Agreed ~ _nya_.” Nyami stood up from her chair. “Mimi, Miss Lion, we have places to be.”

 


	6. TWINKLING

Mimi, Nyami, and Miss Lion took the trolley away from Sengoku Street and to the center of pop’n Town. In the center of town were three places that every resident of pop’n music knew by heart.

The first was the Town Hall, where all big events and gatherings happened. It was the biggest skyscraper in all of pop’n Town, some thirty stories high, and had an observation deck at the top. Next to the Town Hall was The Shining Polaris concert venue, with a massive stage and lawn seating. Past both of these was the grand mall, surrounded on all sides by a river and yet-to-bloom cherry trees. In the center of this open park was the huge pop’n Tree, almost as wide as The Shining Polaris itself, with branches that stretched toward the skies.

“We’re headed over there,” Mimi said as they walked across the lawn. There were people out having picnics and enjoying the nice spring day. Towards the tree, people were interacting with small circular creatures of different colors, with a single white line through them and beady eyes. The creatures seemed to genuinely enjoy contact with the people they were around. Miss Lion watched, led on by Mimi and Nyami, as a person much like her, a girl but a dog, spun around in circles with a blue creature. She then bopped it on the head, and it disappeared.

“Welcome to the pop’n Tree!” Nyami said. “This is the most important place in the entire pop’n World! Of course, there are other pop’n Trees, but this one is the original one. All over the world, there are pop’n Trees that grow these beautiful rainbow colored leaves. They also grow fruit! When the fruit matures, it falls off the tree and gains life. They are called pop-kun!”

“The pop-kun love to be around people,” Mimi explained. “If you pop them on the head, they will disappear into this.” And she pulled out a pink gem on a string; Nyami pulled out a yellow one. “This is a lapis. Most everybody in pop’n music has one! If you don’t, then you can use this.” Mimi then pulled out a bracelet from her pocket. “We used these in the beginning. These pop braces collect pop-kun.”

“Most things in pop’n Town are given free of charge,” Nyami explained. “But there may be instances where something really, really big will require you to trade pop-kun for it. You use your lapis or pop brace to pay for it. Everybody in pop’n music goes to the pop’n Tree to collect pop-kun for this purpose. Other than big things, though, you don’t need to pay for anything. We share all we have, and that’s how the world should be!”

Secretly, Mimi and Nyami knew this wasn’t necessarily always the case. If you remember back, I mentioned they are My gatekeepers of this world, so they were, up until recently, the only ones who had ever seen another one of My worlds. Mimi and Nyami had been to Lapistoria, a much more complex world with more people, more systems, and more cultures. They knew the truth: that not every world was this simple, this peaceful, and they wouldn’t ever take it for granted ever again.

The idea with pop’n music was that I could create a world unfazed by the trying darkness of the first world the Blessed Trinity created. Their world was one of trouble and strife and unyielding capitalism, and of working past that to embrace your culture. It existed despite all of their troubles. But My world -- My world was good and pleasing and perfect, and none of My subjects need want for anything...until I made the mistake of creating Lapistoria. Mimi and Nyami were already too aware that the cracks were beginning to show...perhaps not in how people paid for services or settled disagreements, but in the truth of the words they spoke. (You will, of course, remember that Mimi has been begging Nyami to tell someone _something_.)

“But that’s not the only use,” Nyami moved on. “You can also use pop-kun for pop’n Battles! They are super lots of fun and also can be used to solve disagreements. It’s what it means to play pop’n music!”

“pop’n,” Miss Lion said, looking up through the pop’n Tree’s _komorebi._

“Let’s collect some pop-kun,” Mimi said, giving Miss Lion the extra pop brace. For the next hour, Mimi and Nyami helped Miss Lion collect pop-kun. They climbed into the tree’s branches and shook the pop-kun loose while Miss Lion ran around the ground and collected them. With each ‘pop,’ the pop-kun disappeared into her new pop brace. Each color pop-kun had its own distinct personality; the red ones came right to her, the blue ones required just a bit of a chase, the greens liked to drop in groups, the whites would roll in circles, and the yellows wouldn’t stop bouncing. They worked together to collect as many as they could for Miss Lion.

“Okay,” Mimi said once she felt they had enough, “that’s a good amount to get you started! You’ll want to come back as often as you can, and I’m sure if you continue to stay with Milk, you can visit with her. For now, though, let’s teach you how to pop’n battle. Nyami, can you help her?”

“Sure thing ~ _nya_!” Nyami stood beside Miss Lion, while Mimi stood a good distance away. Mimi drew a box in the air, and out of nowhere a hologram screen appeared. Nine buttons appeared in front of her, and Nyami did the same in front of Miss Lion. “The screen and buttons were given to us by MZD to play pop’n music! All of the pop-kun that you collected will fall from the top of the screen ~nya. When they reach the bottom, push the corresponding button! It’s that easy. You’ll push the same buttons together to the same song, and whoever hits the most on target wins!”

“Your heart knows what song to play,” Mimi said as a song began playing, and notes fell from both screens.

_Hey, you see it, right?_   
_The stardust curtains begin to open!_   
_Connecting our hands, exiting the darkness, we fly out like this._   
_We say goodbye, the colors disappear, but it’s okay_   
_I look for that color, for that voice, one more time._   
_Thought becomes sound._   
_Let’s connect today and yesterday, for tomorrow!_

Miss Lion watched as the notes slowly fell, then her furred hands pushed the buttons as they hit the bottom. The song Mimi picked had few notes and was easy for her to follow. By the time the short song was done, she had pressed most of the buttons right. Mimi, however, had chosen a harder difficulty and had won by a fair margin.

“Good job!” she said as her screen and buttons faded, then she ran up to Miss Lion. “That was your first time! We’ve been playing our entire lives.”

“Playing pop’n music is the best part about being here!” Nyami continued. “It helps you build connections with other people, and it connects you to music! What’s more, it also connects you to the pop-kun! After you play with them, they do disappear, but they’re happy because they played with you! Then even more pop-kun grow from the pop’n Tree!”

“Do you want to play some more pop’n music?” Mimi asked.

Miss Lion looked up at the tree and smiled. “pop’n.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Translation of TWINKLING done by me.


	7. Our Journey Is Everywhere

Miss Lion went back to Milk’s apartment that night, where she was fed a light dinner and then fell asleep after playing pop’n music with Milk herself. She woke up to a breakfast of biscuits and tea. “Mimi was thinking about something. Do you want to go to school?”

“School?” Miss Lion’s speech was made up of scattered nouns and no sentences, but those combined with yes or no questions enabled her to communicate. She still knew nothing about herself, but seemed to understand pop’n music for the most part.

“Yeah, school! If you don’t know what you want to do with your life yet, school is a good place to start. For me, I knew from the moment I arrived that I wanted to be a dentist! But you haven't figured out your special talent yet. If you go to school, you can learn all about new things! Maybe it will give you an idea. Let’s talk to Mimi and Nyami about it.”

She dialed Mimi on the phone, and they spoke. “Hmm. I think it’s a great idea! But _hanami_ is coming up. Do you think we should wait until after _hanami_ and the start of the new school year?” Mimi asked.

“Maybe? I don’t know, I’ve never been to school. But you’re good friends with the headmistress.”

“Tell you what, I’ll call her and see what she says.” Mimi called Milk back shortly after: “She says bring Miss Lion over! There aren’t any lessons for the next couple of weeks until we get to _hanami_.”

Milk agreed, then found a pink colored jacket to put over Miss Lion’s white dress. Then, she and Miss Lion went out for lunch at a cafe, eating toasted tomato sandwiches and teaching Miss Lion new words. Then, they took the trolley across town to a huge building shaded by trees. Corinthian columns held the roof high, and Mimi and Nyami were waiting for them in the courtyard.

“Welcome to Private Bemani Academy!” Nyami said with a smile. “This is the only school in all of pop’n Town. Classes are held here Monday through Saturday morning! We’re gonna see about getting you enrolled here! We just have to wait on the headmistress first.”

“Oh, there she is now!” Mimi turned as a tall girl dressed in periwinkle blue floated towards them, hair swaying as she walked.

“This is Hiumi,” Nyami said. “She’s not only the headmistress here at Private Bemani Academy, but she’s also the student council president! Isn’t that so cool ~ _nya?_ ”

“The two of you speak too highly of me.” Hiumi’s voice was as clear as a bell, but her eyes did not leave Miss Lion. “And whom do we have here?”

“This is the Miss Lion we told you about on the phone,” Mimi said.

Hiumi looked Miss Lion up and down. “Well, she certainly looks capable of holding a class load here at Private Bemani Academy. We take all students from across pop’n Town, and being mute or hard of speech is not going to hold her back at all. Plus, if those circumstances change, we can always evolve your learning plan. Everything is very individualized here. How about you come with me to my office? We can get you set up there.”

They walked into the school and passed through the hallways. The one-story school was in session, and the doors were closed as lessons were taught. “PBA has four classrooms, and you can enroll as long as you like before you find your special talent,” Hiumi said. “We have a rotating schedule of speakers, and if you want to teach the class, you are more than welcome to as well! We also keep our students busy with clubs and provide everybody with lunch. You’ll make friends here that will last a lifetime!”

They arrived at a set of double doors at the end of the hall; Hiumi opened them to her office. “In addition to being the headmistress and student council preside, I also preside over class C in this school. One of our students is currently teaching the class, and then they will go to their gym period. This enables me to perform other functions related to the school, though thankfully there is not a lot of administrative work that needs to be done. The teachers have to have fun as well, of course.” She picked up a book. “Are we registering her under Miss Lion?”

“She hasn’t come out and said her name yet,” Milk said, “so that’s what we’ve been calling her.”

“I will note that, then. Perhaps we can learn her name here. We are at school, after all. Miss Lion, I’m gonna put you in class A, taught by my friend Retsu. He will make sure you are acclimated appropriately. I will also need to send you downtown to Lisa’s store to pick up a school uniform. The term doesn’t start until after _hanami_ , but you are more than welcome to stop by for class in the meantime. We’ll exempt you from homework and tests until then.”

“Perfect! I can walk you to school no problem before opening my dentist’s office in the morning. You might have to find someone to walk you back to my place, though…”

“Oh, I’m sure that will be fine. All of the students leave together at the same time.” Hiumi closed her book as the door opened again and someone stepped in. “I was wondering when you would show.”

“Well, you said I was getting a new student! There’s nothing more hot-blooded than that!” He skipped up to Miss Lion. “I’m Retsu, your new teacher! We’re gonna have so much fun in our class! How about I show you around school so you know where everything is?”

“School.” Miss Lion smiled and nodded.

“I’ll go with you,” Milk said, “just so that Miss Lion doesn’t feel as alone. Besides, I’ve never seen the school!”

When Hiumi and Mimi and Nyami were alone, the headmistress spoke to the rabbit in hushed tones. “I was not at the concert Saturday night. You truly believe…?”

“That she is from another world? It is very possible, but only MZD would know for sure. But all of our phone calls have gone unanswered.”

“How truly mysterious. She does not have a Lapis, and there’s no indication that she is from Lapistoria. I will help keep an eye on her, if you continue to try and reach out to MZD.”

Both Mimi and Nyami nodded. “We can do that.”

 


	8. The Miracle Begins

“So I’ll be able to take you first thing tomorrow,” Milk told Miss Lion as all four rode the trolley back downtown. “Retsu will receive you at the door!”

“School.”

“Yeah, you do seem excited.” Milk looked up at Mimi and Nyami. “I’m starting to think the research life is for Miss Lion here. Perhaps she can be a teacher someday!”

“Not for me, though.” Nyami made a face. “I’m never gonna sit through a class. I always have to be the one talking. I’m the star!”

They got off the trolley and started to walk down Ribbon Way, the fashion district of pop’n Town. All of the big clothing stores were located on this strip, as well as fabric stores and accessory shops. This way, the owners could talk and collaborate and share ideas very easily.

“We’re headed to Lisa’s School Wear,” Nyami said, pointing to a store down the way. “You’ll have to wear the base uniform, but as we figure out your personality, you can dress it up some. Isn’t that great ~ _nya_? You’ll learn how to accessorize!”

Miss Lion ran ahead of Mimi and Nyami and Milk, looking in all of the windows with big lion eyes. Some windows had elaborate decorations. One had a huge blue dress with sparkles on it. It all looked so beautiful, so appealing to the eye. Miss Lion giggled and ran to the next store --

\-- and ran smack dab into Timer.

She fell backward on her tail, while Timer dropped the three boxes and five bags he had been holding from the store he had just been in. “Woah!’ He tried to recover, but failed, and looked over. “Sorry about that --” Then he paused as he saw who it was, and that night at The Shining Polaris flashed back to him. “Hey, wait!”

“Miss Lion!” Milk called out as she ran to help her new friend up. “Are you okay? That was quite a fall you took.”

She stood and brushed herself off, then looked up at Timer. In shock, she pointed at his hat. “Red moon rabbit!”

“Huh?” Timer looked up at his own hat. “Oh, you mean this? I’m not actually a rabbit, silly.” And he took the hat off to prove it, unleashing short locks of brown hair.

Miss Lion’s expression went from shocked to traumatized, and she started to cry. “Aw, wait, it’s okay! He’s not hurt!” Milk turned to Timer. “Put your hat back on.”

“But --”

“Put. Your. Hat. Back. On.” He did so, and Milk turned back to Miss Lion. “See? It’s all better now.”

She did her best to dry her tears and looked at him again. “Red moon rabbit. Mimi.” She pointed at his ears. “Mimi.”

Milk shrugged at Timer. “This is the most she’s said in a sentence since I met her.”

“I don’t know why.”

“Well, she did kind of tumble into you on stage last Saturday. Perhaps she recognizes you.”

Milk didn’t know that Timer _knew_ Miss Lion recognized him. The look in her eyes, the way she had reached up to him...the chaos had blurred out what she had called him to everybody but him. And she was still calling him that. He blushed. “No, no, no, my name is Timer.”

“Mimi.”

“Timer.”

“Someone’s confused,” Mimi said as she approached Timer. “And hello, sweet Timer! How are you doing today?”

Nyami gulped from five feet back.

Timer grinned back at Mimi. “Hi, Mimi! I’m so glad to -- NYAMI-CHAAAAN!”

Nyami heard it coming and nimbly stepped out of the way, narrowly missing Timer’s flyingtackleglomp. He went tumbling once more, with all three boxes and five bags. “Not today ~ _nya_.”

Timer didn’t miss a beat. “I’m so glad to see you! I haven’t seen you since you returned home! I mean, I performed at your coming home party, but I didn’t actually see you there!”

_There’s a reason for that._ Nyami put on her best smile. “Hello, Timer.”

“Timer.” Miss Lion’s head tilted. “Red moon rabbit...Timer.”

“Finally.” Timer stood back up, leaving the packages on the ground. “See? I’m not a mimi...or Mimi...or whatever you want it to be called. I mean, my hat looks like her ears, but I’m different. I’m just me. I’m Timer.” And he grinned at Nyami. “Who is really excited to see my Nyami!”

Mimi glared at Nyami. Nyami gulped again.

“Timer.” Miss Lion looked at Mimi and Nyami. “Mimi. Nyami.” She looked over at Milk. “Milk.” She smiled. “Nakki.”

A pause. “Nakki?” the others asked.

“Nakki.” She smiled. “Nakki!”

“Who or what is a Nakki ~ _nya_?” Nyami asked.

“I think it’s her name,” Milk said. “So I’m Milk, and you’re Nakki?”

“Nakki.”

“Well, that settles it,” Mimi said with a grin. “I’m so glad we know your name now, Nakki! We’ll have to tell Hiumi at the school. Now, Nyami -” Nyami was gone. Mimi sighed. “Nyami! Now where did she go?”

“She ran that way,” Milk pointed, and Mimi ran after her. “Hmm. Wonder what Nyami’s problem is?”

“She probably can’t handle all of this,” Timer said. “I mean, she always runs away from me, right? That’s part of the chase!”

“Timer.”

He turned when Nakki pulled on his blue shirt, and for just a moment, he forgot all about Nyami. “Oh. Hey. Um...are you okay? Do you need something?”

“She doesn’t really talk, so it takes a while to figure out what she wants to say,” Milk explained. “Your best bet is yes or no questions. We were stopping by Lisa’s School Wear - she’s gonna go to PBA.”

“Oh, that’s awesome! My sister goes to PBA when she’s not touring! So you’re out shopping for a uniform today.” Nakki nodded. “Great! Well, if there’s anybody who’s good at clothes shopping, it’s me...as evidenced by all these boxes. You mind if I join you?”

So Milk, Timer, and Nakki went to Lisa’s School Wear without Mimi and Nyami. Milk helped size Nakki for her blouse and skirt, while Timer insisted on buying her a dark blue blazer to match. She couldn’t wear socks, so they found a pair of simple loafers she could wear over her furred feet. “This will be enough to get you started,” Timer said with a wink. “And when you’re ready to accessorize, just call me!”

Milk laughed. “We’ll be sure to do so, Timer.”

 


	9. High School Love

“Okay, class,” Retsu said the next day, “we have a new student that will be joining us for the new year! She’s coming to class early to get acquainted with everyone. Please welcome Nakki!”

Everybody clapped in class A as Nakki entered and walked to the front, wearing her brand new uniform blouse and skirt. “Nakki doesn’t talk a lot, but she still understands you,” Retsu explained. “Nakki, do you want to add anything?”

Nakki smiled. “Nakki. School. Fun!”

“We don’t have an assigned seat for you yet, but that’s okay because these next few days are all about fun! How about you take a seat at my seat? Today the second half of our class is giving their final projects for the year.”

And so Nakki sat in Retsu’s seat and watched as the other students presented their projects. The students were all shapes and sizes and races. The students could pick whatever they wanted to present about, and give a five minute in depth presentation on it. One person gave a quick history of coffee and espresso. Another student played a song on the _shamisen_. Another talked about plants and growing cacti. Yet another gave a presentation on Sunny Park Amusement Area. Nakki listened carefully to each presentation. It was so amazing to hear people talk about what they were interested in!

“Okay, class, we’re gonna break for lunch and then we have a special treat!” Retsu turned to Nakki as class was dismissed. “Did you bring a lunch?” Nakki shook her head. “Okay, well, we can go down to the cafeteria and get you a lunch!”

They walked together down the classroom halls to a big room with tables. The room was busy, as all of the students had lunch at the same time. Retsu walked Nakki through the lunch line, where she chose _anpan_ and a rice bowl for lunch with green tea. She sat by two alien sisters, Ageha and Kelly, in matching uniforms and listened as they talked. She didn’t understand all of what they were saying, but at least she wasn’t seated alone.

After lunch, Retsu gathered the class together. “We’re going to the courtyard for our gym period! Everybody get ready for some dodgeball!”

The class cheered and chattered as everybody walked single file down to the area in front of the school. Nakki followed the others and noticed there were already people waiting in the courtyard, led by a short Chinese girl with pigtails in her hair. They were all wearing purple t-shirts and were also talking among themselves. In the middle of the courtyard were several gym balls of all different sizes and colors. “Are you ready for this, Rinka?” Retsu asked the Chinese girl.

She smirked at him and unfolded her fan. “You really think you’re gonna beat us at our own game?”

“All right, this gets me really fired up! Class A, we’ll be going against Class D’s team! Go ahead and put your red shirts on!” Retsu passed out red t-shirts, which Class A put on over their uniforms. “The aim of the game is simple, try to hit the other team members with your ball! You can’t cross the line in the middle, but you can throw your ball across the line! If you catch a ball, you can invite someone back from your team. But if you’re hit, you’re out! Once one team is knocked out, the other team is the winner! If you got any questions...well, maybe then this isn’t the game for you. But use teamwork and do your best!”

Both teams lined up, Class A against Class D. Rinka pulled out a wooden whistle and blew it. “Let’s begin!”

Nakki watched as half her class rushed forward to participate in dodgeball. She stayed behind; what should she do? Race forward and pick up a ball? Would she get hit? She looked around and saw a tall boy with brown hair grab a ball and throw it straight at her; she ran in the opposite direction, and it missed her with flying colors. She danced around the other balls thrown at her and did her best to avoid them as her teammates in the front got hit and had to leave the game.

What else was it that Retsu said she had to do? She had to work together with other teammates. She looked over to her left and saw a girl with blue hair on her team dodge another ball, then get hit in the head and tumble to the ground. When she got up, Nakki saw that she was crying.

She frowned. Wasn’t this supposed to be fun? It wasn’t fun if someone was crying. She turned and saw the same brown haired boy from before on the purple side holding a red dodgeball. When he threw the next ball, it ricocheted off of another player, and Nakki ran under it and caught it before it hit the ground.

Retsu blew his whistle. “Nakki, pick someone!”

Nakki looked around and saw the blue haired girl from before, and motioned to her. She looked surprised for a moment, but then ran back in and grabbed a blue ball. “Let’s win this, Nakki.”

Nakki smiled and nodded.

“You catch the balls, and I throw them.” And the blue haired girl wound up a pitch and threw it straight at the other side, careening into a green haired demon. She then grabbed another ball from the floor and threw it straight at Marin and Ayumu, who were both in Rinka’s class. It bounced off of Marin, and then Ayumu was knocked out by another ball.

“Get them, Syo!” Marin yelled, and Nakki watched as the same boy from before swung a ball at a dark skinned boy on her side. Now only her and the blue haired girl were left, with Syo and a few others with the purple team.

“Nakki,” the blue haired girl called out to her, “don’t let it get to you. Just stay calm. We can do this!”

She nodded and saw a ball out of the corner of her eye, catching it. Retsu blew his whistle, and Nakki looked over at the blue haired girl. “Ryuta, get back in here!” She then aimed straight for Syo, but another person took the hit instead.

“Keep going,” Ryuta called out as he threw two quickly and knocked out the rest on the purple team. Only Syo remained. He picked up a ball and threw it at the blue haired girl, not paying attention to Nakki. She grabbed a ball from the ground, considered passing it to Ryuta, then made the decision to try and throw it herself. For a split second, she felt a surge of strength run through her, and then she threw. It connected with Syo’s shoulder so hard that he fell straight over.

Retsu blew his whistle. “Team A wins!” he yelled, and everybody cheered.

“That was awesome!” the blue haired girl yelled as she hugged Nakki. “We won, all because of you!”

Nakki just smiled. “Yay.”

 


	10. Run To You

At the end of the day, Nakki looked for Milk in the courtyard, but she couldn’t find her. Milk had said that she was going to meet her here, to ensure she got home safely. What if she didn’t come?

“Are you okay?” She turned and saw the same blue haired girl standing there from the dodgeball game that had just finished. This time, she had a red coat over her uniform and a huge tied pink bunny hat on her head. “You look like you’re looking for someone.”

It reminded her of the boy who had caught her on stage, who had helped her pick out her uniform. “Red moon rabbit?”

“Me? A moon rabbit? I don’t think so, I live outside Fever City. And this is just a hat! See?” She removed the hat, and Nakki tried not to panic. If that was a hat, where were her real ears? Mimi couldn’t remove her ears!

“You’re not supposed to do that, sis. You’ll freak her out.”

The girl smiled. “Timer-niichan!” She ran around Nakki and hugged Timer, who was dressed down for the day in a red hoodie and shorts. “I’m so glad to see you!”

Now there were two of them! Nakki smiled. “Red moon rabbit.”

Timer blushed. “I keep telling you, that’s not my name. Oh, Minit’s, you met Nakki?”

“I just did! We played the best game of dodgeball ever, and Nakki helped us win!” The blue haired girl turned back to Nakki. “I’m Minit’s! I’m so glad I got to meet you today, Nakki! Starting from here on out, we’ll be classmates! But I also want to be friends!”

“Friends. Red moon rabbit.”

“She’s Minit’s, and I’m Timer, and I swear one of these days you need to get that right.” Timer shook his head, red rabbit ears going either which way.

“There you are!” Milk came running up to their group, dressed in a lab coat. “I’m so sorry I’m late! Micaela had an emergency cavity that had to be filled. I didn’t want them to be in pain for the next night!”

“Oh, I’m sure Nakki understands,” Timer said. “We were just all getting to know each other. Milk, you’re on Sengoku Street, right?”

“Yeah. If my mind serves me right, we both walk up to the Iroha Trolley Station and while we go right, I think you go...left?”

“We actually go right! We go all the way to the end of the line, though.”

“Well, maybe in situations like this, maybe Nakki could ride the trolley with you guys to Sengoku Street?”

“Oh, I’d love that!” Minit’s said as the four walked down the path away from school together, Nakki trailing just behind Milk. The trees above them were in pre-bloom, with little buds about to spring forth into brilliant _sakura_ blossoms. Not yet, though - I do my constituents a favor and I let them know when the cherry blossoms will bloom every year, so they can appropriately plan their _hanami_ activities.

Milk and Timer got into a discussion about sweets, and Minit’s dragged behind just a bit. “You’re really gonna love it at Private Bemani Academy. I go there all the time! There are times when I’m on tour and I can’t be around, but I absolutely love school. It makes for lots of fun memories every single year!”

“School.”

Minit’s gave a sad smile. “You really don’t say much, do you?” Nakki shook her head. “Is it because you have to learn words?” She shook her head again. “Okay, what is it?”

Nakki paused for a moment, unsure what to say -- or if she could say anything at all. “Is it that you don’t know?”

“Donno.”

“That’s okay. You know, you gave us all a scare when you fell onto the stage last Saturday night. Do you remember that?”

“Red moon rabbit.” It was all she could remember about that night, before passing out and waking up at Milk’s apartment. “Minit’s, red moon rabbit?”

Minit’s giggled. “I guess?”

“What are you two chatterboxes talking about back there?” Timer asked. “I just asked Milk, and she’s gonna be at pop’farre for your show, Minit’s.”

Minit’s gasped. “That’s so great, Milk! Thank you so much! I’m so grateful for your support!”

“Nakki, do you want to go, too?” Timer asked. “Or do you think that would be too much, Milk?”

“If Minit’s is performing, then I don’t see any reason why Nakki can’t be part of the fun. Nakki, music is a big and important part of living in pop’n Town. Every Saturday night, we have massive concerts all over town! You can go and support your friends, and there’s always a concert in your style! The biggest area is The Shining Polaris, and Timer was doing a concert last week when you fell on the stage.”

“Concert?”

“It’s when people perform music! But there are lots of smaller venues as well. pop’farre is the premiere eurobeat disco in pop’n Town, and this week Judy, Aya, and Mary will be teaching a new dance! Plus, Minit’s will be doing the opening act, and I think Timer will be singing a song before the girls go on.”

“We’d love to have you...but we seriously gotta get you a better outfit for clubbing.” Timer looked Nakki over one more time as they walked. Something as simple as the dress she had arrived in wouldn’t work for a club, and neither would her school uniform. “Yeah, I think so, for certain. If we go tomorrow afternoon after school --”

“I’ll take her, thank you,” Milk said with a grin. “Shopping for a night out should be done as a girls’ event. I’ll ask Judy if she wants to come with.” She elbowed Timer. “Besides...someone’s taken a special interest in Nakki. What’s Nyami got to say about that?”

At the mention of Nyami’s name, Timer’s face went into a lovesick grin. “Nyami-chan~”

Minit’s giggled while Nakki looked puzzled. “Nyami?” Nyami wasn’t here with them.

Milk simply rolled her eyes as they approached the station. “Let’s just go out tomorrow and find you something to wear, Nakki. Leave this puppy dog fool at home. Parapara is a single girl’s world. I should know better than anyone else.”

Nakki didn’t understand what Milk was talking about, but she was smiling, at least. “Parapara.”

 


	11. Sweets Dream

The next day after school, Milk met Nakki at the gate and went with her to Ribbon Way, which was especially busy. “We’re headed to Margaret, which is the premiere place in pop’n Town to go shopping for parapara gear,” Milk said. “Their bigger location is in Sunny Park, which is an hour train ride from here. We should go sometime!”

“Sunny Park.”

“Yeah, that’s a lot of fun. It’s a lot bigger than pop’n Town, though. We should get an entire group together and go after _hanami_.”

Milk walked into the store, Nakki right behind her. The low ceiling store was packed wall to wall with shoes, clothes, and accessories. Girls of all ages -- and even some guys -- wandered the halls, searching for the biggest deals and the newest fashions. “Parapara is way more than just a dance. It’s also a lifestyle! No matter how old you are, parapara is young and trendy. If you accept that in your heart and live a _seishun_ lifestyle, then you can’t go wrong!”

“That’s all it takes, right?”

Milk and Nakki turned to see Mary and Aya standing there, both dressed like they had just come from the gym. “Judy’s finishing up closing up shop,” Mary explained. “We own a dance studio downtown! It’s the best one in all of pop’n Town!”

“You must be Nakki,” Aya said. “Everybody’s heard so much about you! I’m Aya, and this is Mary. We were there when you fell from the sky!”

Nakki smiled. “Aya. Mary.”

“We’re looking for something simple to dance in,” Milk explained. “And, of course, I’m here to see what new things Margaret has as well!”

“Margaret’s been traveling all over the pop’n World for new items for her boutique,” Mary explained as they pushed past crowds to one of the further back sections. “But she always has a select stock of items, basics for anybody interested in parapara. Here, back in this section are items for nonhuman dancers. This way we can find a pair of pants or a skirt with a hole for your tail!”

“You know, I’ve always wondered about that,” Milk said, looking down at Nakki’s tail. It was the same color as Nakki’s paws, with a tuft on the end the same color as her ears. “Mimi and Nyami don’t have tails. So why does Nakki get one?”

“Well, Nakki strikes me as more animal than human. Mimi and Nyami strike me as more human than animal, save for their ears. So that may have something to do with it. It’s all in the way MZD created her!”

“I suppose so.” Milk did not know all of My truth, but there were things she had learned over the years and with Mimi and Nyami. She did know that the two had been unsuccessful thus far in contacting Me. “Well, I guess we shouldn’t question things we don’t know the answers to. Nakki, do you prefer pants or a skirt?”

Nakki wasn’t sure of the question being asked. “Here, let me show you,” Aya said, holding up a pair of flared black jeans and then a very short skirt. “You can parapara in whatever clothes you want! But usually when you’re just starting out, you’ll want to either go big or go small. Many people start with the traditional flared track pants, so maybe that’s what we’ll get you started with?” Nakki nodded. “Okay, perfect! Let’s go try some on! We gotta see what size fits you!”

Over the next half hour or so, Nakki tried on a bunch of different pants, but none of them seemed to fancy her. In those before times when Milk had shopped with Nakki, she had smiled whenever something seemed to work. But right now, she wasn't even paying attention. Her eyes kept going to the ceiling, to the music that was playing, to all of the other glittery and glitzy glamours in the store.

Milk’s own eyes traveled up and finally saw what Nakki was looking at: a pair of dark blue jeans, beaded on one side with elegant and elaborate flowers. “Is that what you’re looking at?”

“Pretty,” Nakki said, a word Milk hadn’t heard her use before.

She turned to Mary. “Can we pull those down?”

The attendant flew up and pulled the pants down, and when Nakki tried them on, they were a perfect fit. “I think this will fit well with it,” Aya said, giving Nakki a long sleeved crop top, black in color.

Nakki tried it on and smiled at herself in the mirror. “Nakki.”

“And now for some special accessories! I don’t think you’ll need shoes or socks, but perhaps a colorful ankle bracelet will help give you confidence on the dance floor!” Mary handed Nakki a solid gold bracelet with two beads, blue and pink, on it. “I think a gold necklace will be too strong of a statement against the bit of fur you have. How about a black choker? I think that will finish the look.”

“I agree. And just a touch of blush and shadow will get her far. We’ll all be dressed like this on Saturday, Nakki! And Minit’s will be on stage, and then they will perform and show us the new dances! Aren’t you excited?”

Nakki nodded. “Dancing!”

“Keep those clothes safe,” Milk told Nakki when they arrived home. “Hopefully if we can keep them in good condition, you won’t have to go get new ones anytime soon. Though if you’re going to be here for a while, you’re gonna start amassing lots of clothes! We’ll have to see if I can find some space in my closet for your things.” She smiled at Nakki. “What I’m trying to say is...I’m really glad you’re here. I don’t know how long you can stay here, because I only have one bedroom and there’s no real space to put your own things, but I do like having you around. Maybe I should ask MZD for an upgrade! It might be fun to have a permanent roommate.”

Nakki smiled back. “Milk.”

 


	12. EURO PICCOLA

~pop’n Lounge~  
That Friday

Now, I know what you’re probably thinking: “This isn’t a story, MZD. This is just some slice of life thing showing off pop’n Town, and we’re following this girl who’s probably some odd Mary Sue insert who’s lost all of her memories. She might be the one chosen to save the world or something, but there’s no threat of danger, no enemies. What is this?”

Well, that’s kind of true, in a way. So here’s the gist of it: I have My personal reasons for telling this story. It is extremely important to Me, as well as all of those involved. I wouldn’t be telling this story if it wasn’t one from My own heart. I do know that there are many different ways to see this, and some of you still will not believe My story, but because of its importance, I feel it imperative to tell it.

pop’n music is a very unique world in that its inhabitants are peaceful and happy all of the time, thanks to the system I have designed. All that you see so far, the sunshine and the complete absence of discord -- these are all hallmarks of this world. In order to keep this peace and harmony, everything stays the same all the time. People have birthdays but never get older. Their feelings for one another never change. And the give and take system initiated by the pop-kun helps regulate any minor incidents that might arise from clashing egos.

Now, I’ve also mentioned that, because of Lapistoria’s influence, the days of total peace and harmony in pop’n music are over. Its inhabitants might not have known that, but I knew it would soon cause a problem. I contacted My guardians and spoke with them about this, warning them to be prepared for anything that might come their way. But while I am the God of pop’n music, that does not mean that I am immune to surprise from other layers. There are, after all, several worlds, and the Blessed Trinity are ultimately the ones in charge of these. This will be revealed over the story, and rest assured that things will not stay peaceful for long, as conflict is at the center of any story.

So it remained that My absence was not noticed in pop’n music, as everybody went about their peaceful, unknowing lives...save for two, who were beginning to lose their patience.

“I just don’t get it ~ _nya,_ ” Nyami whined at the pop’n Lounge that Friday night. The famous duo Reo and Sugi were performing, and Sugi was going at it on the drums while Reo plucked out a swinging rhythm on his guitar. Everybody in the Lounge was captivated by it, save for Mimi and Nyami in the corner.

“We’ve done everything we possibly can! MZD is gone, now Nakki’s here instead, we can’t get answers on anything…”

“Nyami,” Mimi said, sipping on a strawberry drink, “We have to be calm. We don’t always understand the reason MZD does things. He’s never let us down before. We just have to trust the process.”

“I don’t want to trust the process! Every time something has happened, we’ve always been able to go to Him, and He’s always given us answers. Even when we had to go to Lapistoria, and He wasn’t around all the time, He helped us as much as he could.”

“Yeah, and we won’t ever have to deal with that again. MZD promised those days were over.” And I had promised that. As far as I was concerned, Mimi and Nyami would no longer be required to save the world. But even Roppongi gods can be wrong.

“I’m just getting really frustrated.” Nyami blew bubbles in her water. “This isn’t going according to plan at all.”

“Nyami, there’s no plan.”

“There’s always a plan! I just really wish He was here, Mimi. I miss Him. I hate not knowing what’s going to happen next.”

Mimi just sighed and watched as Nyami ordered another drink, then set her eyes on the band. They played with such an energy that went counter to the way Mimi was feeling. Nyami leaned her head on one hand, and Mimi considered what she had been saying. Yeah, it was true I wasn’t around to help, but for all they knew, the only new part in all of this was Nakki. And Mimi and Nyami received new characters into pop’n music all the time.

Besides, Mimi had faced bigger struggles with Nyami. They had traveled to Lapistoria, and collected medals to ensure the world’s safety. And then there was the zeppelin crash she hadn’t told anybody else of yet, which had stranded both of them away from pop’n Town for months. It had just been the two of them and the robot Navi, trying to find a way to get home.

Which reminded her. _Had Nyami told Timer yet?_

She opened her mouth to say something and realized Nyami was staring at her. She blushed. “Yes?”

“You know, we don’t have the answers...but as long as you’re here with me, I think I’ll be able to make it through.”

Mimi smiled back. “We just have to think of other ways to contact MZD.” Then, she gasped. “You know who would know about MZD? Tran would!”

Nyami perked up. “Oh, yeah, she would! She and MZD have always been good friends. We don’t see her often, though, and she’s always in her own world.”

“Yeah, but we see her every once in a while, and she does have a house here. How about we invite her to _hanami_ with us? I bet one way or another, she’ll still get the invitation. Or I can have Navi send her an e-mail!”

“An e-mail would be perfect. Mimi, you’re the greatest ~ _nya_!”

 


	13. Voices

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There are three rules to every story I write. The first is that there must be some sort of dance party.

Milk took Nakki on the trolley to downtown pop’n Town that Saturday night, to an area of town known as Puchi America. Tall buildings had strobe lights in every window, and everybody was wearing the latest fashions. “There are all sorts of music halls in town,” Milk explained, “but pop’farre is the premiere for parapara.”

“Parapara.”

“Yep! And you don’t have to know the dances yet. If you stand in the back, you can catch on and learn them! It’s probably for the best that we do that, anyway. We don’t want there to be an issue if there’s too many people. Whoop, we’re here!” Milk pulled the cord to get off the trolley, and it slowed down at the next stop.

They both got off the trolley and walked toward the nearest intersection. Nakki was wearing the beaded jeans and crop top she had bought with Milk, while Milk was wearing a miniskirt, baggy socks, and a pink crop top t-shirt with a heart. pop’farre was in a dark building; Nakki could only tell which one it was because of the line streaming out the front. She could recognize some of her friends in the line, and a police officer in a grey suit was keeping watch over the door.

“Milk! Nakki!” Milk heard two voices from the side and recognized it was Mimi and Nyami, both dressed to parapara. “Nakki, you look amazing ~ _nya_!” Nyami said with a smile.

“You both decided to come out?”

“Of course we did! There’s no way we would have missed this for the world. Nyami, are you excited?”

Nyami tilted her head. “Of course I am? I haven’t gotten a chance to parapara since I got back.”

“Well, of course, and your boyfriend’s performing the interim show!” Milk sighed happily. “Oh, how I wish I had a boyfriend like Timer.”

Nyami’s face flushed bright red, while Mimi glared at her. Nakki looked confused. “Timer?” She looked around, but he was nowhere to be found.

The line went quickly, and they soon found themselves inside. The entire show area was open, a huge dark room with a stage on one end. The DJ’s booth was manned by Shollkee, and Ice was standing on stage as well, a microphone in his hand. “I wonder how this is gonna go,” Milk said. “Usually at pop’farre nights, it’s less of a concert and more of just dancing all night long. They have different DJs that come up. But Shollkee, Ice, and Timer are all in a band together, and Shollkee is also Judy’s manager as a dancer and singer. So he’s the one who planned all of this out!”

“Wherever Shollkee goes, Ice and Timer go as well,” Mimi noted, standing with their group in the back. “And Minit’s usually does, as well! So it doesn’t surprise me at all that they’re all performing together tonight.” She side-eyed Nyami. “What do you think, Nyami?”

Nyami was looking at her feet. “I want this night to be done already.”

“You gonna run away from Timer again? Or are you actually gonna talk to him after the concert this time?”

“I don’t know ~ _nya_ …”

“Well, I for one think you should just go straight up to him and plop a kiss right on his cheek!” Milk said. “It’s been so long, and if you haven’t talked, then girl, you gotta talk! Tell him about all of your adventures! Ooh, maybe he’ll take you into his mansion and give you a solo concert! That would be super romantic! Ahh...if only I had a boyfriend like that…”

Nakki was listening and not making much sense of what was being said. “Nyami?”

“You remember the boy whose arms you fell into?”

Mimi corrected Milk. “The red moon rabbit, Nakki.”

“Red moon rabbit.” Nakki smiled.

“Well, him and Nyami are…” Mimi glared daggers at Nyami. “I don’t know, man, what are you guys at this point?”

Before Nyami could answer, Ice got onto the stage, and everybody cheered. “How is everybody doing tonight! Welcome to pop’farre, where the music is real and the parapara is life! I’m Ice, and I will be your MC for the evening! Before we get started, I’d like to take a second and give a special shoutout to Shollkee for being our DJ for tonight!”

Everybody clapped as Shollkee took a bow, keytar strapped to his back. “Groovy.”

“Now, before I turn things over to Judy, I’d like to welcome a special girl onto the stage for our opening act. Here’s Minit’s with her newest single, Hopping Magic!”

Everybody cheered as Minit’s took the stage, in her traditional rabbit hat, wearing a candy coated dress. Ice and Shollkee both took their guitars out, but the music was totally different from Timer’s eurobeat -- this was pop and fun! Minit’s smiled and sang into her microphone, bouncing along as she did so.

 _I dreamed of a city of sweets!_  
_I ate too many chewy heart-marked chocolates._  
 _I’m in my pajamas, but there aren’t any worries._  
 _This is a HAPPY TIME of PEACE!_

Everybody danced and cheered along with Minit’s, who did her best to captivate the audience. After Minit’s’ performance, the lights went completely down. With the sound of a keytar riff, Timer was on stage with Minit’s, singing the song he had never gotten to finish at The Shining Polaris the previous week.

 _Don’t ask for me to say “I love you.”_  
_If you doubt me, close your eyes._  
 _Every time the motor accelerates,_  
 _My heartbeat’s out of control…_

The roar for both brother and sister was even louder than the first song. Timer and Minit’s both bowed, and then the live music was replaced by standard eurobeat. Timer and Minit’s both parted for Judy, who had a microphone in her hand.

_Please don’t cry. You don’t know what real sadness is.  
Your tears are carried away by transparent flower petals…_

Timer and Minit’s went in the back, and Judy was joined by Mary and Aya in the front for her dance. She performed two songs back to back, one merging into the next, and then Ice came back onto the stage to help demonstrate the new dance they were teaching everybody. Then, Judy sang along with the few lyrics while Mary and Aya helped dance along on stage. Those in the front row picked up on the dance quickly, and soon, everybody’s hands were waving to the music.

_I can hear your voice...It never worked out fine…_

Nakki’s mind was still stuck on the previous songs that Judy had sung. They had struck her as so familiar. Where had she heard them before? She looked over at Milk, but she was having fun, and it was too loud to try and ask with her limited vocabulary. Why did it feel like she had been here before?

And then the power went out.

 


	14. Electric Doll

The next few seconds were panic in pop’farre. The music snapped off. Judy tripped on stage, unable to see. Mimi and Nyami left where they were and rushed toward the front, out of instinct. The crowd started to head for the exits, starting a bottleneck at the door in the back. Milk held Nakki’s hand. “We should get out of here.”

No sooner did she say that than the back doors slammed shut, locked. Two spotlights went on, shining on the stage. A tall figure stood there, with a long cape and a mask on their face. “The scene is set,” they said, their voice dark and menacing. “Welcome to the end of Bemani! Go, _Teiden Kage_!”

The darkness rose up from the floor, taking on a life of its own. The monsters took on no exact form, changing with every move that they made. With a massive dive, they consumed the people still left on the dance floor, enveloping them in pitch black. The man in the mask smiled as all color and light left in pop’farre was blocked out.

Nakki stood, paralyzed in the back, as the darkness came for her next...then stopped short, held back by something unseen. Then, she heard a voice, strong and loud, calling out above the chaos. “Cosmic Hurricane!” She looked up and saw a tall man with green hair holding out his hand, and suddenly, the darkness was still present but all was calm.

The man on stage looked irritated. “And who are --?”

“Your worst nightmare,” another familiar voice called out, and Nakki saw that the doors had been blown open. Standing in the doorway were Retsu, Hiumi, and Rinka from school! Retsu had one fist clenched, and it looked as if actual fire was sparking off of his hands.

“You mess with one of us, you mess with all of us, and that’s why we’re here,” he said, and Nakki realized that his fist was real fire just before he threw a punch in the air straight toward the masked figure. “Crimson Flame!”

The fire sparked out across the floor and lit everything up, bringing light back to those who had fallen. The concertgoers and dancers slowly rose to their feet, then ran outside. “My pop-kun are all gone!” several yelled, checking their inventories before leaving in fear.

Hiumi rolled across the floor like a hurricane, eyes on the figure the entire time. “Do you have any idea what you’ve done? This is a peaceful world.”

“Yeah, and it won’t be peaceful anymore when I’m done with it! Who died and made you king?”

Hiumi paused. “I am not The King. I am simply a concerned student council president and someone who can do something about you. This has nothing to do with a King or a God of this world.”

“That’s right! You don’t know where he is, do you? Hmm? That’s the great question that’s on everybody’s minds. Well, you might as well count your blessings now, because this world isn’t going to last for long! There’s no need for peace and harmony when every other world is filled with turmoil and suffering. Therefore, I will be taking all of your pop-kun and all of your happiness, and your God is not here to stop me, is he?”

“We will fight against you,” Rinka said. “Every last one of us will.”

“Then bring it.” And the dark cloaked master threw out his hand, and the shadows rose again from the walls toward the four on the floor. But Retsu, Rinka, Hiumi and the new green haired man formed a circle, standing on the outside, and put their fists up. Retsu’s started to glow as he threw punches of fire at the shadows that came after him. When she waved her hands, Hiumi turned the shadows around her to ice. Rinka continued to spin, her pirouettes sending a sparkle of _sakura_ around the dance floor. And with a flick of his yo-yo, the man in green sent gusts of wind against his enemy.

Mimi and Nyami hugged the wall and got back to Milk and Nakki. “We need to get out of here!” Mimi yelled.

Milk’s eyes were on the four in the middle. “I didn’t know people in pop’n music had magic powers.”

“We don’t, but those four were chosen by MZD to help pop’n music because of their powers. I’m sure you remember that they also helped us purify our lapises long ago.” Mimi gritted her teeth. “This shouldn’t be happening. Come, you two. We have to get to the trolley station and away from here. We need to trust them to take care of this. And when this is all said and done, we really need to find MZD, or Tran, or both.”

“What about Judy and the others?” Milk asked.

Nyami looked incredibly pained. “We can’t find them. We tried to get to the back dressing room, but Judy and everybody’s gone, and it’s just dark back there!”

She dug her head into Mimi’s shoulder and sobbed. The rabbit’s resolve was harder. “We have to save ourselves now! Go!”

The four rushed toward the exit, but the shadows rose up around them and blocked their exit. When they ran the other way, the shadows followed, then dove around them, causing each of them to be plunged into total darkness. Nakki opened her eyes and found she couldn’t see at all, that her pop-kun were gone from her gauge, that she felt like all of the life had been sucked out of her.

She closed her eyes, opened her eyes, and found no difference. No light, no noise, nothing. She tried to run, but there was nowhere to run to. Lost in her own mind, she looked around for an answer, for anything she could see. If there wasn’t light, if there wasn’t sound, could she create it? She didn’t have powers like Retsu or a way to fight back. But she could produce sound.

The words did not spring easily to her lips, but she forced them out. “Milk...Mimi...Nyami…” She took a deep breath. “RED MOON RABBIT!”

When someone wishes for something, even if it seems impossible for Me to answer, how can I deny it to them? And as she wished with all of her heart, Nakki found the answer waiting right there in a song, and knew what she had to do to turn the battle tide.

 


	15. Transparent Manicure

Timer, meanwhile, was still lost in darkness.

When he held his gloved hand out in front of his face, he couldn’t see anything at all. In this darkness, he felt...completely hopeless, as if he wouldn’t make his way out at all. He was alone with his thoughts in the darkness. Being alone just reminded him of how Nyami was treating him. They hadn't talked once. Every time he had imagined them meeting again, Nyami would come skipping up to him with closed, happy eyes and a smile on her mouth. In some versions, she would run right up into his arms, and he would swing her around and never let her go. In others, she would initiate a chase, as she always did.

That was how their relationship had always progressed -- him chasing her, and her initiating the chase. She always did her best to invite him to events and dates, stammering the entire time, and once they met up (usually after Timer spent hours looking perfect for his girlfriend) she would run off in shyness again. Catching up with her usually took so long that they never got to do anything or even talk...but Timer never minded. Nyami was always worth it, in his mind.

But still, in this most recent world, she had run away and circumstances had kept him from chasing after her. He knew Nyami had been watching at pop'farre, not saying a word to him. And now he was stuck in this darkness, with no way out. He wouldn’t ever get to talk to her again --

wait. What was that bass line?

It was from one of the songs Judy had sung, and then the vocals cut through -- but they were brighter, stronger than Judy’s own version. They cut through the darkness like a laser light and gave Timer the hope he so desperately needed in that moment. _Who was singing?_

 _I’m here to search for my true self_  
_It’s all I’ve been waiting for_  
 _My bangs blow in the wind, on my nails is a clear manicure_

His vision returned, and in the middle of the dance floor stood Nakki, eyes closed, dancing -- and singing! The picture of a shy, unknowing Nakki was long gone, and this girl stood strong and firm, dancing to the music. Retsu and the others had stopped fighting against the shadows, and all eyes were on Nakki in the dim light.

She segued into the verse with no hesitation, singing more words than she had said up until now.

 _I was always playing on that dark road,_  
_always wearing my strength and my smile._  
 _These days, I just don’t know_  
 _I kissed it, I overdid it, I said goodbye --_

“Who is -- get her out of here now!” the man in the mask yelled. But the shadows were no match for Nakki as she continued to sing, completely unfazed by the darkness, taken over by the song.

 _I’m here to search for the truth, forever_  
_You’re the only one who wants to know_  
 _I’m here to search for my extended fingertips_  
 _For my uneasy clear manicure_

The shadows were almost completely gone now, and Nakki herself started to glow. Those hiding in the green room were finally released, and Timer ran out onto pop’farre’s stage, still watching Nakki. Her motions were perfect, her eyes mostly closed, almost in a trance as she danced.

 _I always knew it was a little different_  
_That thing, that day, those have passed_  
 _It’s boring, I don’t want to call you_  
 _I’m terrified, but I have to move forward, please help me_

“Pfft! Enough of this! I’m out of here!” And with that, the mysterious masked man vanished into the shadows created by Nakki’s own light. But the music did not stop, the background track seemingly assembled on its own on the turntables, and all left in pop’farre were still watching Nakki in her own little world. Her grace wasn’t as great as Judy’s was, and she simply turned in a circle when Judy had turned in several on one foot due to her dance training.

_Among the crashing waves of people on the bridge,  
I met you at our designated time._

She almost seemed to look straight at Timer as she sang, and when her eyes opened fully, they themselves looked like the transparent manicure she was singing about. The air around her seemed to sparkle and shine on its own.

 _I’m here to search for my true colors_  
_with my clear manicure on my connected hands._  
 _I will protect it by coating it over again_  
 _And there is no color to hide my scars._  
 _I’m here to search for my true self_  
 _It’s all I’ve been waiting for_  
 _My bangs blow in the wind, on my nails is a clear manicure_

The song ended, Nakki’s glow faded, and her eyes closed and she lost control.

“Fuga!” Rinka called out, and the green haired boy whipped out his yo-yo and threw wind around Nakki. Retsu ran forward and caught her before she could fully fall to the ground. Her eyes were closed.

“She’s completely out.”

Mimi and Nyami ran to her side, but it was Timer who reached her first. He felt her forehead. “You really need to stop passing out on the dance floor. It’s so not last season.”

Mimi glared at Timer. “Milk, we need to get her back to your house, stat. Tsugidoka, you guys check on the others at the station. Make sure everybody’s okay. If everybody really did lose their pop-kun, we can always go back and get more tomorrow. Nyami, we’ll have to make a special statement on pop’n TV tomorrow morning and then work on getting a hold of Tran. This is gonna be worse than I thought...Nyami? Nyami, are you listening?”

Nyami was not, because as Nakki was picked up and taken away by Retsu and Milk, she found herself face to face with Timer. Her green eyes met Timer’s red, and everything else faded away for just a moment in time. For Timer, it was as if nothing had ever changed, like she finally wasn’t running away, as if this was how it should be.

For Nyami, it was a sweet trap.

 


	16. He Follows the Sky

And now I answer the question that’s been on everybody’s minds: _okay, MZD, where were You in all of this?_ The answer is simple: not as far as everybody thinks. It’s true that Mimi and Nyami were not able to contact Me at this point in My story. Their methods of communication, at least this far, would always come up short. Why is that? Well, I am God, after all. The answer is simple, but the process itself is complicated. The story goes a certain way; the Blessed Trinity keeps the irony clock wound until the day it must be sprung; one has to play the first song in their set before they get to the second.

Wisdom and understanding are gained both by time and effort. Hindsight, I’ve heard it said, is always 20/20. This I knew, but nobody else did -- because I am God, after all. And so it was that I waited patiently until the day I could make everything known, to Mimi and Nyami, yes, but to all. And it was at this time that Nakki, freshly passed out on the dance floor, called out with her entire soul for something -- anything -- that would help her.

And oh, how I had understood the mess she was now in, one that I knew that I should not save her from. But that’s how all troubles in life are, are they not? Hardships, pain, suffering...when you look at them all in pure retrospect, you notice how far you have come, how much you have grown through those hard times. Without these hard times that were yet to come for Nakki, pop’n music would not be a better place, and quite frankly, I would not be a better God.

So it was that I could not interfere with the wheels of fate. My hands were tied by the Blessed Trinity. But there was _something_ I could do.

She opened her eyes in a dark room, lost in an unconscious dream, and found her way to Me. _Who are you?_ The words rang out, but she was not able to speak them. I lifted My head, saw her under My hat brim, and smiled. _For you, child, I am Everything._ And if I could give her anything, I would give her the power of understanding, as I reached forward and touched her lips --

She awoke with a start, screaming nonsense. “Rock castella! Sunday sirens! Bill Gates!”

There was a clatter, the sound of footsteps coming up the way, and then Milk threw the bedroom door open. “Nakki! Are you all right?”

“I don’t know, I thought I saw something --” Nakki covered her mouth. “That -- I can talk now?”

Milk’s face went white. “MIMI! NYAMI!” She ran back downstairs to make a phone call.

Mimi and Nyami arrived minutes later after taking a taxi across pop’n Town. “So you can talk now, but you still don’t remember anything ~ _nya_?” Nyami asked as Milk made the duo tea.

Nakki, freshly dressed, shook her head. Her speech was precise and more formal than Mimi and Nyami had been expecting. “I can talk. I can form sentences. I know the difference between chopsticks and a bowl -- I mean, I always knew those things. But I couldn’t communicate them before, and now I can.” She licked her lips. “This is very odd. I was accustomed to being in a mental fog and not being able to articulate. Now everything makes a strange amount of sense.”

“But no memories?”

Nakki shook her head. “I’ve been here a week, and that’s it. Nothing before that.”

“Not even of the concert last night?”

This time, Nakki paused. “No...I remember there being a strange man in a mask on stage, but that’s it. Sometime after that, it all goes blank. You all were saying something about I sang?”

“You did, and it was epic. I’m pretty sure you have the best voice I’ve ever heard,” Milk said as she delivered the tea, which Nyami instantly downed. “So now what? Are you still going to school tomorrow? I mean, if nothing’s changed other than your ability to talk, then you’re still Nakki who fell from the sky.”

“I --” She paused for a moment, then shook her head. “That’s not right. Hang on.” She paused, thought for a moment, then smiled. “Natsuki. That’s my full name. I must have mispronounced it before.”

Mimi, Nyami, and Milk all smiled. “That makes more sense. Natsuki. I like it!”

After it was clear that there was no danger, Natsuki and Milk went out shopping for groceries for the next week. “You know, actually having you to talk to is going to be totally different now,” Milk noted as they passed...well, the milk, on the way to the bread and rice.

Natsuki put some apple juice in her basket. “What do you mean?”

“Well, I’ve never had a roommate...I’ve always lived by myself. And I have lots of friends, and I’ve always wanted a boyfriend...so I’ve always hoped that someone would live with me. But it’s never happened until you arrived here. Before too long, we’re both going to outgrow my current space.” Milk paused for a moment, then smiled. “I have an idea. How about we change things up a bit? Let’s go to the furniture store today and get a new bed for you. I can rearrange my room so that you have a corner all to yourself, maybe by the window! I have that great big sit-in window that overlooks the street, and I know it’s not a lot of space, but you don’t have a lot of things yet. And I don’t need three shoe closets.” She smiled. “Yeah, I think that would work rather well! How about you?”

Natsuki smiled. “I think I would like that very much. I’m glad you’re my roommate, Milk. How about curry tonight to celebrate?”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Anyone who knows what "Rock castella! Sunday sirens! Bill Gates!" is from gets a box of cookies. It's rather obscure. :P


	17. Home.

“So let me get this straight,” Minit’s said when Natsuki arrived in class the next day. “Your name is Natsuki?”

“Mmhmm. And I can talk now.”

“You’re very polite when you speak. You don’t have to say _watakushi_ every time you refer to yourself, you know.”

“I know...I think.” Natsuki wrinkled her button nose. “The words still feel foreign coming out of my mouth. Do you mind if I stay with _watakushi_ for now?”

“Of course not! Though it does give you a more dignified feeling. You’re an enigma, Natsuki-chan. I don’t know what to expect from you. Last week, you seemed so much younger. Now, you are a true blue high school student.”

Natsuki thought about this as the class progressed that day. The entire class was watching a samurai movie, but she was looking out the window and not paying any attention. Now that the mental fog was lifted, she actually felt like a person...with lion ears, a bit of fur, and a tail. Like she belonged here, like she had a purpose that she had to find out. Most of it all made sense.

But why couldn’t she remember any time before falling onto that stage? Milk had said it was normal, that when she had first arrived in pop’n Town years and years ago, this stranger named MZD had told her everything she had needed to know about who she was. She had arrived at the pop’n Tree, talked to MZD, and had been led by Mimi and Nyami to her new life. Others had come from different worlds to this new place they called home. But nobody had ever exploded onto the scene as violently as Natsuki had. And all of the others had been able to communicate from the beginning, as well.

And then there was the matter of where MZD - I - was. Where was this mysterious stranger who held all the answers?

“Retsu-sensei, can I talk to you for a moment?” she asked after class. And she spoke to Retsu about the thoughts on her mind. Retsu was a teacher, right? So there had to be things that he knew that others didn’t know. That was the entire idea behind being a teacher.

“Well, I don’t have answers for you as to where MZD is, or why you arrived here the way you did,” Retsu noted. “The only thing it reminds me of is when my friends and I first journeyed to Lapistoria. MZD created a portal for us, and we went straight through, and poof! We were in another world! You’re not from another world, though. You would know if you were.”

“Another world?”

“If you had come from another world, you would still have your memories of it.”

“Oh.” That seemed to settle the matter for Natsuki, at least. “So I should use my time here at school to figure out what I want to do with my life.”

“Oh, yeah! But first, wanna have a pop’n Battle with me? I’ve been itching to battle with you ever since we met!”

“I’ll have to warn you, I’m not that good.” And yet, when Natsuki drew the pattern in the air and formed her screen, when the nine buttons appeared in front of her, it all seemed that much more natural. Retsu chose the song -- “my signature,” as he put it -- and he won, but only by a little bit.

“What are you talking about, you’re not that good? I bet you can beat me with just a little practice. Have you been practicing?”

“Milk and I play every night.”

“Good! That’ll be the first step to figuring out what you want to do with your life. Everything goes back to the pop-kun! Now, go catch up with your friends. Even just being around others and experiencing life with them will bring all sorts of new ideas into your head!”

Minit’s was waiting for her out in the hall, putting her hat back on. They joined Timer and Milk at the door, and while Minit’s told Timer about her day, Natsuki held back and listened, wondering what new things she could learn from this interaction.

“...and they were saying what a great job I did on my solo in choir! I can’t wait until the next year starts after _hanami_. We’re going to sing all sorts of new songs!”

“Um…” Natsuki poked Minit's in the shoulder. “Do you think I could sing with you, too?”

Minit’s bounced around like the rabbit she resembled. “Oh, I think that would be absolutely amazing! Boing, boing, boing! Timer-niichan, can she sing with us next weekend? Hmm? Can she?”

“We’re taking next weekend off,” Timer said, “but the weekend after that, I’m scheduled for a fashion show at ABH. You were going to be my opening act, but...to be honest, you’re too cute and pop for my fashion show.”

Minit’s blushed -- not because she didn’t want to perform, but she knew it was true.

“But maybe if Natsuki sang one of Judy’s songs again, that would fit well. What do you think, Natsuki-san? We’ve only heard you sing the one time.”

“How about we all go to karaoke? That way, Natsuki can sing in front of us and see if she likes it or not,” Milk said. “We can go straight there from here.”

“Karaoke! Karaoke!” Minit’s went _boing, boing._

“I’ve never heard of karaoke, but if it’s singing, then perhaps I should see what it’s about,” Natsuki said. After all, she couldn’t remember when she had sang in front of everybody at pop’farre, but everybody else had liked it. Was it just because it distracted the mysterious masked man? She didn’t want to think about that again. Nobody else had talked about it. (Which was a lie -- of course Mimi and Nyami were panicking, trying to e-mail Tran, and find _some_ way to contact Me, all in vain. But Natsuki didn’t know this.)

The four of them took the trolley to a karaoke bar, where they rented out a room and Timer fronted for some snacks. When Natsuki got behind the microphone, the lyrics clicked into place for her, and she knew exactly what notes to sing, when to sing them. And when she took a breath, she suddenly realized how much air she had in her lungs. Where was all of that before?

_The world is shining!_   
_I want to feel that moment when it happens, just a little._   
_Look! We peered into the illusion, and our worlds overlap and melt..._

 


	18. What Happened?

ParaSTAR Dance Studio  
~ That Wednesday, After School ~

Judy clapped her hands along with the music, “One, two, three, four! One, two, three, four! Aya, tighter on that turn!”

Natsuki, dressed in sweats, sat on the floor as she watched Mary and Aya go through their routine one more time. Both girls were dressed in identical streetwear, long black sweatpants and short sleeved white hooded sweatshirts, with bright white Keds. They looked amazing, although Judy was still telling them all of the little ways they could fix things.

“Perfect. All right, we’ll revisit this tomorrow. It’s gotta be flawless before this weekend at pop’farre.” Judy turned to Natsuki. “Besides, I have someone else to help. Natsuki, have you stretched?”

“Stretched?” Natsuki asked as Mary and Aya rested, trading places with her. She walked to the middle of the wood floor.

“You always have to stretch before you dance. If you don’t, your chances of injuring yourself increase. But also, it helps with your flexibility.” Judy helped Natsuki stretch. “Yeah, you have no flexibility right now, but once you practice a lot, it will get easier!”

“I hope it will get easier. This really hurts.” Natsuki frowned. “I didn’t know dancing would be this painful.”

“Well, let me know when it starts to burn, and that will be a good point to stretch at. Don’t want to overstretch!” She helped Natsuki with the rest, bending forward, lunges, then they spun around in a couple of circles and did jumping jacks. “All right. Now, let’s go ahead and get started.”

“Now we’re starting?” Natsuki felt out of breath already.

Judy was unfazed. “So the trick here is that we’re gonna have you singing a song and doing a simple dance along with it. Did you warm up your vocals before you came in? ...okay, the dramatic pause tells me you did not.” She ran over to the corner, where an upright piano was sitting. “I know enough piano to go through warm-ups, so let’s do this.”

Natsuki was still tired, but she rose to the challenge and worked through her vocal warm-ups. With every note, she felt her throat constrict, felt odd. Even after just singing a few notes, she was out of breath.

Judy wrinkled her nose. “You have such a beautiful singing voice. I wonder why it’s so hard for you to get the breath you need.”

Natsuki shrugged. “It just...is really hard,” she said between deep breaths.

“Hmm. Well, maybe it’s like this. You’ve been playing pop’n music for a while, right?”

“I make sure to practice every night with Milk, but I can’t seem to get past the easy difficulties. I know that the board you create gives you the option of what level you want to play, and you and your opponent choose the same level, but I can’t get up to the normal parts yet.”

“Yeah, like that. So lots of practice will enable you to play the harder difficulties. Practice breathing whenever you get a chance. We’ll have to simplify a lot of the dance moves for now, to enable you to sing the lyrics. Mary, Aya, I need those poles now.”

Mary and Aya went into the studio’s back closet and pulled out several poles, setting them on the ground. “This is the size of the runway at ABH Fashion Stage. You’ll have exactly this much space off the stage to perform, and everybody prefers you perform on the runway itself. So there will be a lot of walking and singing, which is good for someone just starting out like you. If you tried to do a harder move, you’d fall off the stage. The two things you need most for a performance like this are balance and confidence.”

Judy had been right; there was lots of room to wiggle. Natsuki was confident that, even if she fell, she wouldn’t fall off the stage as long as she stuck to the middle. She took the fake microphone from Judy and stepped just so, turning every once in a while, holding out her arms. “If you move slowly down the runway, you can last the entire song this way. That way, you’re not just standing in one space the entire time.”

When she reached the end of the runway, Judy clapped her hands. “That looked good. Now, have you been practicing the song at home?”

“I’ve been listening to it a lot.” When Judy put on the recording, Natsuki’s voice once again came out clear, strong, almost as if it sang of it own accord. She got halfway through the first chorus before she suddenly stopped, coughing. “Sorry -- I didn’t realize I could hold that note longer.”

Judy just shook her head. “Let’s put them together.”

They stayed at the studio late through the night. By the end of it, Natsuki had most of it down, but there were still some issues with moving down the runway and singing at the same time. Judy took her out to her favorite place to eat, an American diner with hamburgers, hot dogs, and fries. “This place always reminds me of L.A.,” she said as they sat in a booth, her sipping on a milkshake and Natsuki ordering a salad and a soda.

“L.A.?”

“I’m originally from America, but on a trip to Japan, I was discovered by Shollkee.”

“So you didn’t just arrive in pop’n Town like Milk did?”

“Nuh-uh. Some of us were here from the beginning, and MZD scouted us to live in pop’n Town. Shollkee was the same, and Timer, and Mimi and Nyami, and Mary was as well! And Sanae-chan and Rie-chan - I don’t think you’ve met them yet. But yeah, a bunch of us have stuck it out for the long run, and we all love living here. Makes me wonder why Mimi and Nyami left in the first place.”

“Mimi and Nyami left?”

“Yeah, for a little while. I’m glad they’re back, though. Mimi and Nyami are the greatest. They’re silly, but they’re also really dependable. I know they’re thinking of new ways to help you here.”

Natsuki smiled. “I’ll make sure to practice my music extra hard tonight.”

“Rest a little. You deserve it. We’ll be back at it tomorrow.”

 


	19. North Wind

ABH Fashion Stage  
~ The Next Saturday ~

Natsuki looked at herself in the green room, running another hand through her hair. All around her, attendants were running and stage hands were handing out props. “Ten minutes to pre-show!” someone yelled.

She looked down at her white blouse and the same beaded jeans she had worn at pop’farre. The last week had been a blur, with all of Judy’s practices, clothing fittings, and even an interview on Mimi and Nyami’s TV show. While school was fun, on top of everything else, she was tired every night and went to bed quickly in her new corner of Milk’s room. They had both decided on a futon that could be rolled up every night, but still gave Natsuki the window to put any things she might own and give her a chance to sit.

Milk had suggested journaling to put down her thoughts, but when she wrote, the words still came out odd, long brush strokes that started to smear. She had already asked Milk for a new nib twice. But when she looked at the writing, she still understood what it said: nervousness about the concert; the discovery that she did not like _edamame_ ; the way she had felt when Mimi and Nyami took her out for cake, just the three of them. Every day was an adventure, and though she still didn’t have many of the answers, she felt secure. The strange event a week ago was a blip on the radar, and since she didn’t remember it, the thought of it happening again had never occurred to her.

Timer, meanwhile, was about ready to throw up.

He stood in the wings waiting for the crowds to arrive. ABH was solely a fashion venue, with a long runway down the center. It had been owned by Maruroo, but was now owned by Nia and Toa, and designers all over the pop’n world would come to ABH to show off their new collections. Timer wasn’t a designer - far from it - but knew several of the designers by heart, as he would often commission new outfits from them. Toa still designed most everything he wore on stage these days, including the orange sleeveless jacket he was sporting this weekend.

“I like your outfit.”

He turned and saw Natsuki there, microphone in hand, ready to go on. “Thanks.” And with a smile, she walked right past him onto stage as Toa announced her name. The music started, and she posed, then began.

_My tear-colored thoughts spill over..._

This time, there was none of the glow that had happened at pop’farre, but Natsuki’s voice was still en pointe. When she turned at the beginning, her eyes were closed, probably out of nervousness. It reminded him of the first time he had performed, years and years ago at pop’farre. There had only been a few people in the crowd then, including Mimi and Nyami.

_As long as you are in my heart,  
I will never cry again._

“TIMER-KUN!” He felt a glomp from behind, but when he turned, it was Mimi, not Nyami.

His heart dropped. “Hey, Mimi.”

“She’s looking great out there, isn’t she?” Mimi smiled and turned toward Natsuki. “Never would have guessed she had just arrived here a couple of weeks ago.”

It reminded Timer. “Still no word?”

“Still no word.” Mimi sighed. “It would be better if we hear _something,_ but MZD knows what He’s doing.”

 _I can’t hold it in; I was enveloped in kindness_  
_As they overlap, their rules increase._  
 _I thought that I was happy._  
 _When did you start feeling this way?_  
 _I don’t understand._

“MZD always knows what He’s doing,” Timer muttered as he continued to watch.

Natsuki held onto her microphone. The monitors had to be specially adapted for her huge cat ears, so there was a huge, almost invisible headpiece on her ears holding the earbuds in. Judy had said they would get some custom made, but they were made in Sunny Park and they would take a while to make. She held on tight and kept her balance, swaying as Judy had taught her how to do, singing to an invisible person on the other end of the runway.

_Why don’t you like this? The north wind is painful.  
The world blurs through my vision; I can’t see the night sky._

Once he actually stopped to listen to Natsuki lyrics, Timer felt his own eyes well up with tears. Why had Judy picked this song? Was it torture? He looked back at Mimi and watched her watch Natsuki, pretended for a second that Mimi was Nyami. Where was his one true love? He looked around for just a moment, but did not see her. “Do you know where Nyami is?” he asked Mimi, finally.

Mimi almost looked aloof. “What’s it to you?”

_And so it repeats: These ordinary occurrences overflow  
These memories do not fade and stick in my heart_

“Timer!” Ice tapped him on the shoulder. “You’re on deck, dude. Do you have what you need?”

Timer nodded and smiled, even though he felt like crying. It was one thing for Nyami to run from him, but it had now been almost a month and no sign of her. “I do.”

 _That future promise I believed in now flies away in the sky._  
_I couldn’t say those words that final day -- I’ll ride on the north wind._  
 _Honestly, honestly, I’m so glad I met you…_  
 _And now, I can end my love, so I can welcome the new season._

He took to the starting spot in the middle of the stage, away from the eyes, still behind curtains. He took a deep breath and focused his eyes forward, on the same invisible person Natsuki had been told about by Judy. Judy had told him the same thing, a long time ago -- it was a way to stay focused on the end of the runway. And he had always believed that Nyami would be waiting for him at the end of the runway. She was his invisible person, the one he walked for.

He opened his eyes to focus on Nyami -- and found Natsuki instead, at the end of the runway, not invisible at all, finishing her song. She held her balance, one paw extended toward the sky, her silhouette set against the runway lights.

_My tear-colored thoughts spill over_   
_I sink deeper into the blue of my mind._   
_As long as you are in my heart, I will never cry again._   
_As long as you are in my heart, I will never cry again._

He wiped away one tear, and then Natsuki’s song ended, and he hit the floor.

 


	20. une fille dans la pluie

“Look, Natsuki-chan! The sakura have blossomed! It’s time for _hanami!!!”_

Minit’s’ words brought the entire Class A to their feet, running over to the windows and looking out the windows. Sure enough, the trees all around campus had suddenly burst forth with beautiful pink petals. After class, the entire school was abuzz with chatter and activity, kids talking in the halls, those with wings literally buzzing as they made picnic plans.

“Now, calm down, calm down, class,” Retsu said. “The arrival of cherry blossoms means that tomorrow is our last day of this year! This will give you all plenty of time to celebrate _hanami_ with your friends before the new school year starts. We don’t have anybody graduating in our class this year, but I know that Hiumi has at least one person. That graduation ceremony will be held tomorrow as well. After that, then I will see you all for the new school year.”

There was a knock at the door; it was Hiumi. “Since the cherry blossoms have bloomed, we’ve decided to let out school at lunch so people can enjoy them. They’ll only bloom for a week, so please take advantage of the nice weather. Please be back in the morning for the graduation ceremony.”

Everybody cheered; Natsuki turned to Minit’s. “Is your brother going to pick you up still?”

“I don’t know. I know he said he had a meeting with someone this morning. Do you think you could walk me to the trolley, at least?”

“Of course!” They shouldered their _randsell_ backpacks and walked out of school together. When Natsuki looked up, she could see through the pink petals to the sky. It was different than the pop’n Tree in the middle of town, which had huge branches and lots of different colored leaves. These were all pink, little petals, and when the branches swayed, a few of the petals scattered loose.

It reminded her of something, but she wasn’t sure what.

“Natsuki-chan?” Minit’s asked, but Natsuki did not respond. She simply stood in the middle of the path, cherry blossom trees all around her in bloom, wondering where she had seen these blossoms before.

“Hang on,” she said, and then she ran ahead of Minit’s, away from the school and all of the students who hadn’t left yet, eyes on the petals falling above her head. She ran until she was most of the way down the path, all by herself, surrounded by sakura. She looked up, then, around, and tried to yell back at Minit’s, but the words were gone from her mouth again. Looking up again, she closed her eyes, feeling dizzy.

Where had she seen this before?

What was this place?

She kept trying to search through her memories and found nothing -- and then, a single voice, in a language that sounded familiar but she could not understand, cloudy images filling her mind, flashing through before she could understand what they were. Then, there was a whisper, somewhere in her mind, and she followed it into the darkness.

Mimi was at the gate when she saw Natsuki collapse on the path. The two had been handing out flyers at the school gate to passersby for their town-wide _hanami_ celebrations. Sanae-chan and Rie-chan were going to hold a mini-concert on the lawn, and it promised to be a good, nostalgic time for all. They had been in the fountain square all morning and now wanted to inform the students.

But Natsuki collapsing alone on the path to school took precedence.

Mimi handed the papers she had been carrying to Nyami and ran toward her; Nyami followed. Mimi reached her first, kneeling by her side. Natsuki’s eyes were closed, but she was breathing, just like the day she had fallen from the sky. “I think she’s okay, but she’s out again.” Mimi turned to Nyami. “Go in the school, find Hiumi. Now!”

Nyami hesitated. “But --”

“Will you just do as I say? For once?” And there it was, all of a sudden, out in the open again. “Natsuki’s in trouble AGAIN and we need to help her! I can’t do this all on my own, Nyami.” Mimi left Natsuki still on the ground and faced Nyami. “The sooner you go find help, the sooner we can help her, because I don’t know what’s wrong with her. I don’t know _anything_ that’s going on. And MZD is being so much help right now!”

There was a pause, then Nyami spoke. “This isn’t about Natsuki, is it ~ _nya_?”

“You’re right. It’s not.” Mimi felt like slapping Nyami, but instead, she closed the distance between them.

For a moment, Natsuki was forgotten. The school was forgotten. The flyers were forgotten. The fact that just about anybody could see them was completely forgotten. There was just Mimi, and Nyami, and the _sakura_ above them, and a situation so imperfect that, for a long time, it wouldn’t have belonged in the pop’n world at all.

Nyami mewed, then broke the kiss, face flushed. “They’re gonna see ~ _nya_ \--”

“I don’t care. We need to help Natsuki-chan, and then, we need to talk about this.”

It jolted Nyami back to activity. “Right.” Thankfully, she intercepted Hiumi and Minit’s further down the path, and then Timer and Milk not soon after. Shollkee brought his vehicle just as Natsuki was coming to. She didn’t say a word, so Milk and Mimi helped her into the car, one step at a time.

“Just make sure she gets back to your place and rests,” Mimi said. “Nyami and I will be over in a little bit to check on her.”

“Are you sure she’s gonna be okay?” Minit’s asked as she dug her face into her big brother’s hooded sweatshirt, sobbing her eyes out.

“Of course she will be.” Timer looked over at Nyami, who also looked worried. “Nyami, do you think so?”

Nyami realized she was alone with Timer; she did not look at him, but smiled. “I think so! Oh, while I have you here, do you want to go out for tea tomorrow? Our usual place? I promise to show up on time.”

She wasn’t running away? Timer suddenly felt a lot better -- still worried about Natsuki, but he was going on a date with the love of his life! “Yeah, I’ll be there! 10 AM sharp!” He grinned. This was going to be the best!

 


	21. We Pass Each Other

Timer knew he would love Nyami the first time he set eyes on her.

He had been waiting in line for the pop’n music audition, absentmindedly playing with his hat, when a catgirl with braids and baggy pants had stuck her head out of the building, calling for the auditionees to follow her in. His red eyes had met her green ones, and from that moment, he wanted to be a part of...whatever it was she was a part of. So he did his best at the audition, and he got in, and he moved first into pop’n Town, then into a house on the outskirts, and finally earned enough prestige that he could have a mansion all to himself near the river.

But when he had walked through the door that first day, he had looked back at Nyami, and she had blushed, and he had resolved from that moment to talk to her, to get to know her better. And over the days and months and years, he learned her name was Nyami; that she had a practical twin best friend named Mimi; that she hated coffee but loved shopping. In fact, the first time he went shopping in pop’n town was with Nyami. When he had found a dress he was sure she would like, he showed it to her, and she ran away, blushing. He never did get her in that dress.

It was how many of their dates would go, but they both seemed to like them. He would approach her, and she would run away, and she would smile and he would smile and he would never be _close_ to her. But this was happiness, peace, where nothing ever changed and everybody was content with the way things were. Nyami and Timer never even dared consider what might happen if they took their relationship further, or made things official. Whenever Nyami was asked if Timer was her boyfriend, she would blush and stammer through things. Timer would say, “of course she is my girlfriend!” And even though Nyami’s way of returning Timer’s feelings was to up and run, to skirt around questions, he was content with that.

And then Lapistoria happened.

Ever since Mimi and Nyami had been pulled into saving the world, Timer had stayed away from it all, preferring a stress free life where he didn’t have to work hard, could order his new outfits online, and look amazing every single day. Once Nyami understood the inner workings behind My worlds, though, she couldn’t go back. When the veil is lifted, knowledge is imparted, and with that knowledge comes responsibility.

It was why Mimi and Nyami, after saving the world, took off with Navi-kun in their zeppelin. What happened between them those days is between them, perhaps a story for another day, but they left pop’n Town as two separate people and returned one. And from that point on, the way that Nyami felt for Timer paled in comparison to the way she felt for Mimi. It didn’t even matter anymore.

This did not make sense to Timer, however, who hadn’t traveled around the world, who didn’t know the truth. To him, life was still simple, and to Nyami, it was a complex world of possibility that she could no longer turn her pretty green eyes from. But she understood this, and the last thing she had wanted to do was hurt him, which was why she had waited so long to tell him the truth. Mimi had pushed for it, for every day that Timer did not know the truth, it was another day that Mimi and Nyami had to hide their relationship from the world and those who might not understand. Weren’t Nyami and Timer together? Didn’t Mimi have her own paramours? Once something was created, that was the way it always was...until it wasn’t.

And Timer himself didn’t understand that. He had been so excited for Nyami to return home that he went and bought a new outfit for his concert at The Shining Polaris. Even amongst the chaos of a little lion girl crash landing onto the stage, he had still looked for Nyami above all. And ever since she had been back, he had called her house every day, mostly getting her voicemail.

With Timer being so closed-minded at that point in time, he was certain Nyami still loved him. That was how it worked. He could close his eyes and remember the one time he had held her hand, the most precious memory he had. It was during _hanami_ one year, and while Mimi was telling everybody else in their group a story, he had leaned back and laid in the grass, looking up at the _sakura_ above his head. Then, he had felt something brush up against his hand.

He had turned, just a little bit, and had seen Nyami lying the opposite way, her hand in his. His face had turned the same color as his red rabbit hat, but without a word, he had laid back down, and the two of them had continued to hear Mimi’s story together, it eventually fading away into the other noise around them. There were so many people enjoying _hanami_ that year, and none of them mattered to the two in the grass, _sakura_ petals surrounding them.

It had ended too soon, and Nyami had never said anything else about it, but Timer had kept that memory locked inside his mind ever since then. And he had been planning for a long time, and he had wanted to put that plan into action this _hanami._ Now that Mimi and Nyami were back from their travels, he would get a big fancy blanket, just for him and Nyami, and put it right next to Mimi’s blanket. And then, he would ask Mimi’s help, and Mimi would make sure Nyami didn’t run away this time. And then, they would be together forever, making more memories under the _sakura._

It didn’t compute when Timer walked into the tea shoppe the next morning and saw Nyami sitting in a corner booth, staring out the window. Her eyes did not meet his the entire time, and she didn’t talk a lot when he finally sat down. The waitress had delivered the tea, and she had sipped carefully from it before taking a deep breath and looking into Timer’s eyes.

It didn’t compute at all for him when she said, with confidence in her bittersweet-tinged voice, “We’re done.”

 


	22. Romance Miracle

Minit’s wilted. “Why can’t you go to _hanami,_ Natsuki?”

“Because Mimi and Nyami think it’s too much of a danger.” Natsuki frowned. “I can’t look at the cherry blossoms, or I start getting dizzy. Every time I leave the apartment, I have to take a parasol with me, and I can’t go too far. I don’t know why I feel this way. They look so pretty.”

Minit’s frowned. She had missed her friend too much, and with school out, their hang-out options were limited. So Minit’s had brought Natsuki some bubble tea, and they were sitting in Milk’s living room. “I know. And I’m sorry. Everybody’s so excited about _hanami._ But we’re now excited about a thing you can’t go do.”

“I know. Milk said she should stay home with me on Friday, but she’s been looking forward to this all year. I told her she needs to go.”

“Yeah, the entire town is gonna be there. Hey...maybe I can remember to come back early, or something? If I do that, maybe I’ll bring you something from the celebration.”

Natsuki gave Minit’s a sad smile. “That might work.”

The gears in Minit’s’ head were still turning as she took the trolley back to the east side of town, to the Digi Rock Mansion. Set apart from the rest of town by a huge gate and a long, winding path, the Mansion sat on a hill that overlooked the sea. It almost looked like a castle, with a gatehouse and everything.

She ran through the gatehouse and down the path to the West Wing, which was all hers, three stories and twenty four rooms to call her own. Her foyer was painted pink, with a candy chandelier above her head. She skipped up the massive staircase and pushed the intercom on the wall. “Hi, _niichan_!”

The voice on the other end sounded sick. “Hi.”

Uh-oh. Timer never sounded THAT sad. Minit’s turned the intercom off immediately and ran across the West Wing, down the long hallways of rooms filled with stuffed animals and past the kitchen stocked with candies, through the main doors to the center hall and then to the north side. She turned right, went down the service hallway, to the elevator, up four floors, then back down the hallway to where she knew Timer would be.

The entire fifth floor of the north wing was a huge music production facility, where Shollkee and Ice often hung out and stayed for days in the middle of long composition sessions. She entered the studio and went left, going to studio B, walking straight through and barging right in on the mixing room. Sure enough, Timer was there, without his signature hat, dressed in black jeans and a black t-shirt, laying on the couch and staring at the ceiling.

She flipped on the lights. “All right, get up. She always runs away from you, _nii-chan._ Up and at them. Go write a song about it like you always do.”

This was the one time Minit’s was wrong. “She dumped me.”

“WHAT?!?!?” Minit’s was so in shock she turned the lights back off, then ran to the couch, the glow from the main studio giving them both light to see by. “What do you mean she dumped you? She’s your…”

“Everything. But she fell in love with someone else.”

“...is that even possible?” Minit’s thought about it: people fell in love forever, right? How could someone be in love with someone else? When you fell in love, it was forever. There was never this idea of choosing somebody else. She felt tears spring to her own eyes. This hurt in a different way than normal; usually her mouth hurt if she ate too many sweets. But this actually hurt in her own _heart._

She sat beside Timer, and brother and sister cried for a little while in the darkness. Then, Minit’s ran and got them both tea and tissues. “So now what?” she asked him.

“Well, we’re not dating. She’s...happy, or whatever. I don’t know. I can’t really think about it.” He stared straight ahead at a spot in the floor. “I don’t want to leave this house.”

“Oh. So you’re not going to _hanami_?”

Timer winced. “How could I? I don’t want to see her right now. If I see her, it will just remind me of how much I hurt without her!”

Minit’s frowned and hugged him again, rubbing his back. “I’m sorry, _nii-chan_. I’m really sorry.”

“I know. And everybody’s going to be there.”

And it was then that Minit’s got an idea that would change the course of history -- but she chose not to reveal it to Timer in that moment. She stayed with him in the north wing that night, and all through the next day, and then on Thursday morning, the day before _hanami,_ she broke the news to him. “Timer, I don’t think you have to spend _hanami_ alone.”

“What’s that mean?” Timer had put himself together just a little bit more, but he still hadn’t left the mansion. Sure, he had gone walking through the garden, and for long swims in the climate controlled pool, but he hadn’t left the campus. Several acres and almost a hundred rooms meant he never got bored...but he was most certainly lonely.

Minit’s smiled. “You know Natsuki’s not going to _hanami,_ right?”

“I didn’t. Why not?”

“She can’t go see the cherry blossoms, or she starts passing out again. So she’s locked in her apartment like you’re locked in here! You two shouldn’t be alone while the rest of town has fun. You should find something to do together!”

Timer thought for a moment. “That sounds like a good idea! But what would even be open?”

“I know there are still some shops open downtown. You should call and see what’s open. But first, you should call Natsuki and ask if that’s a good idea.”

Timer smiled for the first time since that week’s heartbreaking meeting with Nyami. “I think I will go do that right now.”

 


	23. Forever The Earth

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Was totally on vacation/out of town/dealing with suddenly being famous, which is why this is posting on a Tuesday night.

~ The Friday of Hanami ~

The entire town was abuzz with _hanami_ activities and plans. It was a special time of year, signifying that spring had finally arrived again, and it was worth celebrating. I always set the date for when the cherry blossoms bloom, and I always give Mimi and Nyami a heads up for around when it will be, but I like to keep the actual date a surprise. That way, all of a sudden, the cherry blossoms bloom, and the entire town becomes a huge party.

And don’t worry. I had given them enough notice before I dropped off the face of the earth. I have My reasons.

Besides, I had to give them enough time to plan. Many of the townspeople always came out for Mimi and Nyami’s _hanami_ viewing parties. The two pop’n mascots always took lots of blankets and covered the area under the pop’n Tree, leaving a patchwork of different blankets people could visit as far as the eye could see. There were stories told and _sake_ drank and music played, but this year, Mimi and Nyami had a surprise that nobody else was expecting.

“Do you think they’ll be anticipating what we’re gonna tell them?” Mimi asked Nyami, who was looking out the window. Word had gotten around that Timer would not be attending _hanami_ for the first time ever, since everybody had been expecting him to perform.

She wrinkled her nose. She still wanted to be friends with Timer, but she knew he didn’t feel the same way she did.

“Still thinking about Timer?”

Nyami looked back at Mimi. “Mimi, I...I’m sorry. I still care about Timer, and I didn’t want to hurt him like I did. But I know it had to be done ~ _nya_. I hope he’s not gonna stay inside his mansion all day and feel sorry for himself.”

“Whether he does or doesn’t is not up to you.” Mimi hugged Nyami from behind. “Besides...it’s probably for the best that he’s not there when we share our special news.”

“About us?”

“Yeah. And when people have questions, well, we’ll just tell them what happened! It’s an epic story that I think is fitting for _hanami_.” Mimi smiled at Nyami. “A story I want to hold dear forever and ever.”

Now Nyami blushed. “I’m sorry I never saw before that you had feelings for me. I was always caught up with Timer!”

“Yeah, well...you and I both know that things became more clear after we traveled to Lapistoria. The way we want things isn’t always the way they work in the world, and it’s not always how MZD wants them.”

“Is He gonna show up at _hanami_?”

“He better.” Spoiler alert: I didn’t.

Even those who couldn’t travel to _hanami_ in the middle of town made their own ways to celebrate the season. Citizens with severe allergies went to their shops and started major spring sales, hoping to bring in shoppers. Tea shoppes opened up their doors with flavored beverages. And Ribbon Way, one of the few streets without a single _sakura_ tree on it, was bustling with activity even right before the parties started at noon.

By twelve-thirty, most of the people had cleared out of town...and Natsuki was still standing in Milk’s mirror, trying to decide what to wear.

When Milk had heard about her and Timer hanging out at _hanami,_ since neither of them were going to the festivities, Milk had sprung into _date_ mode. “Oh, I’m so happy for you! I mean, I totally thought Timer was dating Nyami, but this is so romantic! You have to look perfect for this day!” And then she and Minit’s had dragged Natsuki to Ribbon Way and bought her at least a week’s worth of cute date outfits.

Natsuki had tried them all on in the mirror, but she still hadn’t made any sense of this day. She was just going to hang out with Timer, right? There wasn’t anything special about it. Why was Milk making this a big deal?

When she had asked Minit’s about Timer and Nyami, she had just shrugged and said, “Ask him for yourself -- but not today!” It was odd, like everybody was keeping a secret from her. Natsuki understood love; it was all Milk wanted and something she dreamed about a lot. She often used Timer and Nyami as an example, but also used her friend Hana-chan and her paramour, Satoru. Natsuki had never considered there would be someone for her like that, but if Timer belonged to Nyami, why was he going on a date with her?

She shook her head and tried on another dress, a blue jumper with flowers on the edge. When she turned in the mirror, it gave her a flattering silhouette just perfect for spring. She slipped on the sandals Milk had bought and attached a flower clip in her hair. Perfect. Now she just had to wait for him to arrive.

“Hey, Natsuki, are you up there? The front door’s locked.”

She looked out her sitting window and saw someone downstairs, tilting her head so she wouldn’t see the _sakura_ trees to the right. The person outside Milk’s door was tall, with black pants on and a frilled purple shirt. A white beret sat on his brown hair.

It took her a second to realize it was Timer, because he wasn’t wearing his normal rabbit hat. “Hey!”

He grinned at her. “Get on down here! I’ve got some awesome ideas for today!”

No matter what Timer had put on that morning, it all looked the same until he removed his rabbit hat. He never removed his hat. When he had first arrived in pop’n Town, he had sometimes gone without it in an effort to impress Nyami, but when he realized she liked him better with the hat on, he wore it all the time when he was outside the mansion. Nobody had seen him without it for years; in fact, Minit’s was the first to earlier that week.

Without Nyami, though...it felt odd. And he still had to wear something, but he knew he didn’t want to be a ‘red moon rabbit’ right now. He just wanted to be Timer, and to hang out with Natsuki while everybody else had fun elsewhere. And besides, it wasn’t like the rabbit hat was going anywhere. After this was all said and done, he’d go home and put it back on, like nothing had ever happened.

She arrived at the doorstep, unfolded her parasol, and together, they were off.

 


	24. Your Sound And Prelude

“So where should we go first?” Natsuki asked Timer as they made their way toward Ribbon Way. The trolleys were still running, albeit on a modified schedule since today was basically a holiday. As long as Natsuki had her parasol above her eyes and she watched where she walked, she would be fine.

Timer walked by her right side, keeping more of an eye on where they were walking. “Well, most of the stores you’ve been to are closed, but Toa will be in their office. I figured it might be a good place to start! If they can take your measurements down, maybe we can get you a custom piece made!”

Natsuki found herself blushing. Timer seemed to be _really_ enthusiastic about this. “Custom piece?”

“Yeah! And then after that, I know for a fact that Smoke’s Cafe will be open. He’s not a _hanami_ kind of person, so he said we should stop by and he’ll whip up something for us on the house. Don’t you worry about being left behind.” He skipped in front of her parasol and stared into her grey eyes. “You’re gonna have the most fun. Trust me, okay?”

She smiled and nodded. “Mmhmm!”

Toa’s office was sandwiched between a huge department store and a children’s boutique on Ribbon Way. It was a small, unassuming white building with a window and a door. Timer waltzed right in without knocking. “Toa!!! Where are you hiding?”

“I’m in the back!” called out a feminine voice, and Natsuki watched as a boy -- or was it a girl? -- walked out into the office lobby and past the white desk. They greeted Timer while Natsuki looked around. White walls, white chairs, white desk, white chandelier...she could clearly see the theme here.

The person turned toward Natsuki. “So you’re the one everybody’s talking about! I’m Toa! I don’t live here -- I live in Sunny Park with my sister. But I make custom outfits for Timer all the time! And I’m also good friends with Mimi and Nyami, and Headmistress Hiumi. So of course I’ve heard all about the adventures of Natsuki. As long as you’re doing well, and you keep up with Mimi and Nyami, I don’t think you’ll have any more trouble here.” They slammed a sewing box down onto the table. “Now, how about we get started! Timer, have you thought of the color detail you want yet?”

“I’m gonna go with the blue.”

“Perfect. So that’s navy blue on top of the sky blue, and then an accented hat to match. Were you still interested in the LED option? I was going to have Rainbow-ya start drafting up ideas. I think the best way to go would be for a straight blue line where I have the color planned.”

“Agreed. Except the hat. The hat needs to be all LEDs if possible then, so it can go full-out rainbow.”

“Ell ee dee?” Natsuki had trouble keeping up. What exactly was it they were talking about?

Timer grinned. “Come with us, and you’ll see.”

Natsuki followed Timer and Toa past the all white waiting room to the back studio. Fabric scraps were all over the place; paint splotches were on one wall; bolts were lined up against mirrors. “It’s been a while since I’ve cleaned here...but I haven’t been back in a while.”

“Weren’t you here for Mimi and Nyami’s return?”

“I was. But I missed your concert at The Shining Polaris. How is Nyami, by the way?”

Timer blushed. “Good enough. What about that hat?”

“Right.” Toa ducked behind a worktable, lifted up a sewing machine and then two more bolts of fabric, then found a sketchpad. “This part I haven’t started sewing yet, because I’ve done so many of your hats now that at this point they just fly off the machine.”

“They’ve done 14 of them,” Timer whispered to Natsuki. “And yes, I’ve counted.”

Toa wrinkled their nose. “Perhaps Natsuki would like a hat? Or perhaps a tiara is more fitting?”

“We don’t really know what her style is yet, other than cute and functional.”

“Then cute and functional it is. I would recommend you go to all the shops on Ribbon Way, though, Natsuki, and find what suits your fancy.”

It reminded her. “I did like the beaded jeans.”

Toa flipped to a new page of their sketchpad and took notes. “Has a preference for parapara style. Though I’m guessing less _gyaru_ and more subtle.”

“Think Judy, but maybe with a softer edge,” Timer chimed in. “Like if you made something parapara for your sister.”

“That might work! Okay, so I’m thinking if you already own beaded jeans, you won’t need another pair just yet. And jeans are extremely hard to sew. So I’m thinking a one-piece, beaded along the sides. Ooh, maybe I could make it in the same baby blue color I’m using for your Ticker Tape debut?”

“She’d be able to rock in it that night for sure!” Timer turned back to Natsuki. “That’s not for a while, but it gives Toa plenty of time to make it. Every year for my birthday, I hold a major concert that goes on all day. If you wanted to sing at it, you could wear a dress that looks like my outfit! Same color and everything! Though...maybe it doesn’t have to glow.”

“Beads instead of LEDs.” Toa closed the book. “I think that’s my thought on that for now. Do you mind if I look over a few things, then?”

Toa brought out a couple of fabric bolts, and Timer went back and forth between at least twenty seven colors before choosing one. Then, all three looked at the baby blue, and Timer signed off on it. Toa took a measuring tape and, with Natsuki’s permission, they took some of her measurements for the dress. “Looking at this, I would say you’re the same size as Judy in just about everything. So that should be a good starting point. If you just come back here when Timer does his fitting, then I can make adjustments as needed.”

Most of it went over Natsuki's head, but she understood that she was getting a dress custom made for her, and that more fun opportunities were waiting for her. “Okay!”

 


	25. murmur twins

Past Ribbon Way, a bunch of restaurants were all grouped together on a side street. Timer led Natsuki past those and down an alley, to a wooden door. “Ladies first.”

She stepped inside and saw a long staircase going down into darkness. “Oh, of course he doesn’t have the lights on up here,” Timer said, reaching over Natsuki’s head and turning on the light. Then, they both walked down the narrow staircase to another door, which Timer opened for Natsuki. The room downstairs was hazy, darkly-lit, with a bar in one corner and a piano in the other, with space for a small jazz band to perform whenever they wanted to. Tables and chairs were scattered everywhere, and it was quiet.

“Smoke, you in here?” Timer asked.

A dog poked his head over the bar. “Oh, there you are, Timer! Was wondering when you and your girlfriend were gonna show.”

Timer’s face lit up as he looked at Natsuki, then back at Smoke. “Uh -- I -- I mean -- this isn’t Nyami, Smoke --”

“Oh, I know. Always knew.” Smoke had sunglasses on his eyes -- a nice fashion move, if I dare say so myself -- but he still smiled. “Welcome, young one. What’s your name?”

Natsuki realized he was talking to her. “Um -- Natsuki.”

“Ahh, yes. Sorry we’re not really open at this time, and I don’t know if this is your usual kind of scene. But I promised a good time.” He flipped a switch, and soft piano music started playing in the background. “We do have lunch hours, though, so I’ll have Belle get on whatever you two want for lunch on your date.”

“I told you already, it’s not a date!” Timer rolled his eyes, then removed his hat. Natsuki blushed -- she had never seen the red moon rabbit without any hat on at all. Traveling around with a bunny hat-less Timer had been...strange, if that was what you could call it. She knew it wasn't his real ears at this point, but it was still odd.

He led her to a nearby table and pulled out the chair for her. “Sorry about all the confusion. I just...wanted you to have a good day, you know?”

She smiled. “It is a good day.”

He blushed again and looked away as a short French girl came out from the back and gave them menus. He handed one to Natsuki, then ducked behind his so she wouldn’t have to see him. Long ago, he had secretly hoped that he would be able to take Nyami here, to see her sitting across from him, to not have her run away and to have a good lunch with her. On those occasions where he had come by to watch Ice play piano, he would always strike up a conversation with Smoke, talking about music. They were from two different musical worlds -- Timer in eurobeat pop and Smoke in blues and jazz -- but they could identify with a lot of the same ideas. More than once, Timer had borrowed a jazz idea in a song, and Smoke had taken his advice as well.

Timer had always told Smoke about his girlfriend and had wanted to bring her here. But apparently he had never named Nyami by name, and now Smoke thought Natsuki was his -- he peeked out again from around the menu. Natsuki was studying it carefully, trying to decide what she wanted. He sighed again and picked a sandwich; when Belle came back, he handed the menus back to her.

Now he had nowhere to hide, and a fluffy lion sitting across from him. He wanted to close his eyes and pretend it was Nyami sitting across from him, but he knew better. That would be doing a disservice to who Natsuki was...and Timer realized, as much fuss as there had been about Natsuki’s arrival, he didn’t really know a lot about her at all. Everybody in pop’n Town had their special talent -- his was music, Milk’s was being a dentist, Nyami’s was apparently breaking hearts all over town, but Natsuki? “So, Natsuki?”

She jumped, then looked up into his eyes. “Yes?”

Oh, how could he put this? “I mean -- it’s like I always see you, but we’re always hanging out with Minit’s or Milk. Is this weird?”

She shook her head. If Timer was feeling all the nerves, she apparently didn’t have any. And why should she? Timer was just a friend without a bunny hat at the moment.

“Well, what do you think about this place?”

She looked around, then closed her eyes. “It’s very mysterious. It seems like the kind of place you would hang out.”

That was new. “What do you mean?”

“It’s mysterious. Like you.” She looked back up at him. “Why didn’t you wear your bunny hat?”

So she _had_ noticed. “I mean...I guess it was time for a change of pace, I guess.” He hadn’t ever tripped over his words before, not even in front of Nyami.

Natsuki smiled again. “It looks good on you.”

Well. If her words before had made him nervous, that shut him up completely. He bit his lip. He had to get her to talk, or else -- “What do you -- I mean -- what do you think of the dress we’re designing? I mean, that Toa is designing for you?”

“I like it so far!”

Thankfully, Timer could talk about clothes all day. “What do you like best about it?” And from then on, the conversation came easily to both of them. Belle brought their sandwiches as they talked about clothes, shoes, Natsuki’s inability to wear socks, purses and accessories, then hats and hairclips. That then segued into school uniforms, then talk of the new school year, and Minit’s and her own pop music career. Now that they were into the conversation, Timer felt a lot better...almost like he could talk about anything at all.

“Are you two going to stay here all day?” Smoke asked after a couple more hours had passed.

Natsuki looked at Timer. “Well, we don’t really have anywhere else to be, do we?”

“Tell you what, let’s uncover this piano and see what kind of music we can make.” And Smoke uncovered the upright piano in the corner, playing a few notes before launching into a more jazzy version of one of Timer’s own songs. He had no choice but to sing along, and then he requested North Wind, and Natsuki did her best to sing along as well. “You have a very nice voice,” Smoke noted. “You and Timer should sing together some time. How about you sing together now? What song do both of you know?”

“We do both know Transparent Manicure. It’s an older song.”

“Was that the one I sang at pop’farre?” Natsuki realized she knew the song, but she still couldn’t remember singing it before.

“It was.” This one was slower, and Natsuki caught the beat, sitting on her stool near the piano and weaving in and out with the melody. When Timer knew she was secure, he came in underneath with a harmony that almost stopped Smoke from continuing to play. The way the two of them sang together, the cadence to their tone, a warm timbre, a sound that had to be shared with anybody who would listen --

The downstairs door opened, interrupting the music, and Minit’s crashed through. “ _Timernii-chan!!_ You have to come quick! It’s an emergency! He’s at _hanami_ and he’s stealing everyone’s Pop-kun --”

She froze. Smoke froze. Time froze. And without warning, the color was sucked from Minit’s’ face, and she was frozen like a statue. Smoke did the same, the music stopped playing over the restaurant, and Natsuki and Timer were left alone in a colorless cafe.

 


	26. Lacenaire

Timer rushed forward to meet his sister, but she was already stone, her panicked look frozen in time, colorless. “What’s wrong with her? Minit’s? Talk to me!”

Natsuki looked around the cafe. Everything was even darker now, all the color devoid -- only she and Timer were in color now. “She was saying something about _hanami_.”

“We have to check it out. Let’s go.” And when they left the cafe, the entire street was dark, a sepia ghost town, no noise. The _sakura_ had all turned so grey that Natsuki didn’t even feel woozy when she removed her parasol. They ran up to Ribbon Way -- no color. The shoppers were frozen; the birds were suspended in mid-air, unmoving.

Timer frowned. “We have to get to the tree.” The trolley was unmoving, so Timer ran, and Natsuki had to work to keep up with him.

It wasn’t supposed to be like this. This was an emergency, and where did Timer always go in an emergency? Mimi and Nyami. Well, maybe more Mimi than Nyami right now, but he could put aside his issues with Nyami. Something was happening to the pop’n World. He hadn’t been involved when Mimi and Nyami had traveled to that other world, but he knew it had something to do with the disappearance of pop-kun. _Like that other night at pop’farre._ Was that masked man back? It sounded like it, from what Minit’s had said before she froze.

Was any place safe? Why hadn’t he or Natsuki froze?

“Keep running!” he yelled out. He stopped to wait on her, and then took her hand, and they ran together through pop’n Town’s Main Street, over the hill to where the pop’n Tree and The Shining Polaris were.

And now they stopped, for everything was grey as far as the eye could see. The Tree was muted, but still had some color to it. The long patchwork of _hanami_ blankets under the Tree and covering the surrounding field were all greyscale. And all of the _hanami_ spectators were frozen...save for two.

The masked man was back, wielding a pop’n battle against Mimi and Nyami nearby. And from the looks of things, he was good. Timer identified the song being played as “Spinning the Ring of Life,” a high-level song that not even he could pass. Mimi and Nyami were hitting the buttons together, a group effort, but the song ended and their screen closed.

With a wave of his hand, the masked man sent a dark wave over the world, and the ground shook beneath Timer and Natsuki's feet. “Mimi! Nyami!” Timer called out, eyes on the girl who had broken his heart.

Nyami turned. Her eyes met Timer’s. “I’m sorry ~ _nya_ ,” she said before she was frozen and the color drained from her face, her smile unmoving.

Timer felt the bottom drop out. His attention turned from the frozen Nyami to the man. “What do you think you’re doing? What kind of masked strange phantom _kamen_ thing are you?”

The man stood strong as Mimi turned to stone, as well. “Is that a challenge?”

“You’re not answering my questions. What are you doing here?”

“And you didn’t answer my question.” He held out his hand. “Or would you rather I eliminate you now?”

Timer paused. This was hopeless; nobody else was around. But if he could buy Natsuki some time, she could get out of here, maybe find some help, maybe do _something_. He couldn’t win. If Mimi and Nyami couldn’t win, then he most certainly could not win. But he could buy her time. “I will fight you.”

“Then you will lose, and I will take your pop’kun and your lapis will become clouded.”

Lapis? “I got news for you, Mr. Phantom Kamen. I don’t have a lapis.”

“Even better.” He drew the screen. “I’ll even let you choose the song.”

He nodded and drew up his own screen. When the buttons appeared, he chose “PUNISHER,” the hardest song he knew. “Natsuki! Get out of here!”

“But --”

“Now!”

She hesitated again, then ran along the blankets, past frozen figurines that used to be pop’n Town residents, and behind the Tree. Timer began the song, then locked in as much as he could. All of the feelings -- the discord, the sadness from losing Nyami, the panic of the world being devoid of color, the same feelings of hopelessness during the pop’farre concert -- he poured the energy into his song, focusing as much as he could. There was a sliver of hope that he might be able to win, and if he could win, maybe he would get some answers as to who this person was and why they had this power.

The notes started to blur in front of his red eyes. He broke combo -- once, then twice. And then, the shadows surrounded him and made it impossible for him to continue.

The force knocked him over, onto his knees, and the monster in the mask darted forward, looming over Timer. His pants were muddied and the white beret had been knocked off his head. “You lose.”

“At least...at least tell me why you’re doing this.” Timer looked up. “At least let me suffer before you kill me.”

He smiled. “Death would be too kind. Your future, your life, is mine for the taking. And once I amass the energy, then nobody can stop me, and I will live forever!”

_Live forever._ Natsuki listened from where she was sitting behind the pop’n Tree, then darted back out and between the man and Timer. She looked up at him. “Nobody should live forever.”

He laughed. “Why not?”

“Because life is full of precious moments. If they went on forever, then would they be that important?” She found the strength to continue talking, to speak from a heart she didn’t know she had. “If it was just the same day, day after day, and nothing ever changed from that, then what’s the use in it? We are who we are because of our good days and our bad days. So both of those are precious, and time is fleeting, and we only get one life. Enjoy it, instead of wanting to live forever.” She felt a certain bittersweetness. “Why fight for something that’s impossible? Why take everybody else’s energy?”

“Do not fight with me! You will be the next to go!”

He raised his fist against her but froze. “Uh, Natsuki?” Timer asked.

Natsuki turned around and looked at Timer, then realized she was _glowing_. She looked back at the masked man and, for the first time, she could sense fear in him again. Remembering how Mimi and Nyami had said she sang him away at pop’farre, she sang the first thing that came to mind:

_Please don’t cry. You don’t know what real sadness is..._

 


	27. Red Spider Lily

When Natsuki closed her eyes, she could focus on her feelings. This power had began the moment she had ducked behind the tree, but she didn’t want to say or do anything that would draw attention to her. Timer, after all, had told her to run. But she couldn’t just leave her friend behind. Where would she go? What would she do? The entire town was now devoid of life, except for herself, Timer at the moment, and this strange masked man from pop’farre.

She had stood in the way, spurred on by her own conscience, but hadn’t ever noticed her own glow. But now that she stopped to notice it, it increased with her singing. Her fur stood on end, and she felt the rush within her.

She knew she couldn’t stand a chance in a pop’n battle against this master.

But perhaps she could do something _else_.

She threw her hand forward, and the wind and the rush of energy followed and knocked both the masked man and Timer away from her. The pop’n Tree, still dead, blew in the wind, but the masked man tumbled through the air and far away, finally regaining his bearings close to the end of the field.

“What was that?? Who are you?!”

She looked up, and the words bid themselves. “Your worst nightmare.” A yellow crystal appeared in midair, and she grabbed it, glowing even brighter, almost as if she were being electrocuted.

A _lapis_? Timer looked on in shock. Lapis gems helped the best of the best play pop’n music. Minit’s had one, Mimi and Nyami had one, even Milk had one. Seemed like everybody had one now but him! “Natsuki?”

She looked back. “Yeah?’

“I don’t know what you’re doing, but if it can defeat that Phantom Kamen and get our color back, go for it.”

It came naturally to Natsuki, and she dashed forward, nearly flying through the air toward the Phantom Kamen. He flew toward her, the shadows he had used at pop’farre joining him in midair, but they were no match for Natsuki’s light. She connected with him, sending him spiraling through the air again. The blowback threw her toward the tree, and she held onto the branches, scratching and ripping her jumper.

He flew through the air and dove at her again. She put her paws up, and lightning coalesced together and formed a shield, which he bounced off of. She found better footing in the branches and jumped down, arm extended in a massive ball of light. He dodged, then countered; she flung her arms up to protect herself and dodged the majority of it, knocked off her feet but not hurt. The shadows regrouped and rushed toward her, aiming for the kill, hoping to surround her and take her color, her pop-kun, her life.

Hiumi raised her pointer finger, and the shadows froze, encased in ice before they could reach Natsuki.

She looked up with a smile. “Hiumi-sensei! I’m so glad to see you!”

“Not now.” Hiumi’s eyes were focused on the Phantom Kamen. “He must be stopped.”

“Yeah, this man just comes into our world wanting our pop-kun -- and not only that, but to ruin everything?” Natsu turned and saw Retsu, Rinka, and Fuga nearby, still all in color. There were tears down Rinka’s face, and Fuga even looked sad. Retsu’s entire right wrist was on fire. “You’re gonna give them back right now, or you’re gonna pay!”

Natsuki closed her eyes and hummed to herself, and she began to glow again. Retsu looked on in shock. “What’s up with that?”

Hiumi turned to Rinka. “Do you think she’s one of us?”

She pulled out her fan. “No time for that now.” She turned to Natsuki. “Natsuki, come with us. Let’s take him down.”

Natsuki nodded, then took Hiumi’s hand. Together, the five rushed forward, all attacking the Phantom Kamen at once.

“Cosmic Hurricane!”

“Snow Prism!”

“Crimson Flame!”

“ _Liàn Shǎn Liáo Luàn!”_

“Not today!” The Phantom Kamen whirled around and dodged the attacks, then surrounded himself with his shadows. “You do not understand! I have the upper hand now, and this shell of a world can be left behind! Remain here without your world and without your god! There is nothing more for you now. Soon, you will wish that I took you as well!” And with a laugh and a whirl of his cape, he and his shadows were gone.

Natsuki hit the ground hard as her glow faded. She felt dizzy, like she was going to throw her sandwich from lunch up. Biting her lip, she forced herself to look up. Hiumi was consoling Rinka, who was crying rather loudly. Fuga was holding back Retsu, who was still searching for wherever the Phantom Kamen had gone. The park was still dark, and when she looked up, the Tree was completely black, leaves and all. The sun was nowhere to be seen.

She looked down at her paws. What was that power she had felt? How did she automatically know how to use it? She needed to tell Timer and -- she gasped. In the rush of power, in trying to defeat the Phantom Kamen, she had forgotten entirely about Timer. “Timer!”

She got up and ran toward where he was last, forgetting about everything else. Thankfully he was still on the ground, in color, breathing, but hunched over. She reached his side and tapped on his shoulder. “Timer? Tell me you’re okay.”

He looked up, and she could see how hard he had been crying. He didn’t say a word, but pulled her into a hug and started sobbing again on her shoulder. “I’m sorry. I’m so, so sorry.”

In the quiet of the world, she could still hear Rinka crying on the other side of the tree. She looked up again at the tree and wondered...how could it have gotten so dark? Did the Phantom Kamen really have this power? Would he come back?

“We have to leave,” she whispered. “It’s not safe here. He’ll find us.”

He nodded. “Who else is here?”

“Retsu-sensei. And the others who were at pop’farre that night. Hiumi-gakuencho.”

He stood, then replaced the hat on his head. “She’s right. We have to get out of here. We can’t stay in the open. Should we go to my mansion?”

Hiumi nodded. “Let’s move.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The decision to put Rinka's catchphrase in her native language was one that I made to respect her culture and race. Please let me know if this is offensive, and I will change it back.


	28. Snow Prism

“I’ve never been to your mansion before, Timer.”

“Well, no offense, but it usually is a little more colorful than this.” The six of them looked up at Timer’s Digi Rock Mansion, which now looked way more like a haunted house than a beautiful building. The sky was turning dark, so Timer led the way through the front gates and into the main hall. When he opened the doors, it was pitch black, because the ‘sun’ had set and there was no electricity to see by.

“Come this way.” He led them down a short hallway to a huge room with massive windows. “This is one of our downstairs sitting areas. We might be able to see the best here right now.”

Natsuki looked around the room. It was truly a sitting area, with huge curtains parted to the sides and several small sitting areas. But when she sat on the couch, it felt very hard, like the cushions were flat. When she touched the curtains, they felt like plastic.

“None of this is right,” Timer said, removing his hat again.

“The only things that are real anymore are the articles of clothing we had on us when that man attacked, and ourselves,” Hiumi said. “Come. Let us sit and talk.”

They all picked seats; Natsuki and Rinka sat on either side of Hiumi on a couch. Timer picked a chair, while Retsu sat next to Fuga on another couch. “This strange man has taken all of the pop-kun from the world and has turned our world into a shadow of what it once was,” Hiumi started. “As far as I can tell, this fulfills what MZD told us would happen, as He warned us some time ago. This masked man should have no relation to Jade, so this is a new threat. Mimi and Nyami have been trying to get a hold of MZD ever since Natsuki arrived here, but they were unable to, and they are of no help to us now.” She smiled. “But nobody messes with the Tsugidoka, especially with all we have been through. We are a tight-knit team, and we will find some way to bring this world back to life. I know if anybody can do it, it’s the four of us.”

Rinka held onto Hiumi’s arm. “I’m scared.”

“I know. We all are.” Hiumi turned to Natsuki. “That power that you felt just now, fighting against that man...”

“The Phantom Kamen?”

“So that’s what we’re calling him,” Fuga noted. “Evil has a name.”

“Letting evil have a name means we can focus on him more, and bring him to justice,” Retsu said.

“But the power just manifested itself? And you knew automatically how to use it?”

Natsuki nodded.

“Then it is like our powers.” Hiumi appeared to be deep in thought, the small amount of light framing her figure. “The four of us have elemental powers unlike anything anybody else in the pop’n world has. All inhabitants of pop’n are able to play pop’n music, but other than a few small magic powers, nobody has elemental powers like this. We were all born with these powers, and they all awakened themselves from a young age. Since you just arrived here, Natsuki, this would be that same young age for you. But what I’m curious about is...what is your element? As you can tell, I control ice, Retsu controls fire, and Fuga controls wind. Rinka controls the earth and all that grows in it. The four of us form the Tsugidoka team, and we help Mimi and Nyami with anything they might need.”

“And right now, they need our help more than ever,” Rinka said.

“I know this is odd,” Timer said, “but where do I fit in all of this? I don’t have some magic power. I don’t even have a lapis.”

Natsuki took out her star-shaped lapis, which did not have any color in the dark but she could still feel it in her paws. “This helps with pop’n, right?”

“It does, and it also helps with your elemental powers. Did anybody see her use them?”

Timer raised his hand. “She was glowing with this yellow light the entire time. And it looked like lightning came out of her paws.”

“That settles that, then. Natsuki’s element is probably electricity. Which makes sense, because none of us have it.” Rinka’s blue eyes danced as much as they could in the low light. “Natsuki, that’s so cool!”

“I just...I didn’t know I had magic powers or anything. I just fell from the sky one day. That’s all.”

Retsu got up from his spot on the sofa and touched Natsuki on the shoulder. “As your schoolteacher, I want you to know that I am also your friend, and if you need anything, let me know.”

She smiled. “I understand, Retsu-sensei.”

“For now, we don’t have any light to see by,” Fuga said. “If we’re safe in here, wouldn’t it stand to find some bedrooms and try to rest?”

“If we go just a bit further down this hall, there should be two guest rooms for the north wing,” Timer said. “The beds are huge, so maybe we could divide up by gender?”

Everybody nodded, and Timer led the group to the two bedrooms. Hiumi opened up the windows, letting a bit of light in. “Just make sure you’re as put together as you can be, and we’ll sleep okay.”

Natsuki smoothed out what was left of her dress, still covered by the leggings and shirt underneath, and ran her fingers through her hair. Hiumi undid her ponytail, and Rinka left her hair accessories on a nearby table. “How should we do this?” she asked.

Hiumi thought for a moment. “Maybe Natsuki should sleep in the middle?”

The bed was huge, and all three girls fit, but the sheets were still cold. Having the furriest member of the three in the middle was a good idea, and they huddled close. When they couldn’t sleep, Rinka told stories about growing up in China and discovering her powers, and Hiumi talked about her parents. Natsuki didn’t have any old memories, but she talked about Milk and what it felt like to sing.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the hallway, Fuga and Retsu did their best to fall asleep next to each other, as they always did. Timer, meanwhile, sat in a chair and waited for what was left of the sun to rise.

 


	29. Metropolitan Flight

The next day, the six of them met again in the big windowed room. Timer had checked the entire house, but all of the bread was hard like rocks, the taps were off, and all of the food was stale. “This is all we have,” he said as he brought in bottles of _ramune_ and uncooked _ramen_ packets.

“Is there a particular reason that someone like you, with as many rooms and fancy things in this house, has a substantial stash of _ramen_?” Retsu asked.

“It makes for good studio food. Something about _ramen_ and singing go together.” They ate the packets in silence, and while they were not substantial at all, it was something.

“Okay.” Hiumi clapped her hands. “It’s clear we can’t stay here. And MZD isn’t here, so we can’t travel to Lapistoria. We need to do something. Mimi and Nyami were trying to reach MZD, but they’re not here. Does anybody have a plan?”

“Who’s MZD?” Natsuki asked Timer.

Timer shrugged. “Beats me.”

“You’ve been here long enough that you might remember, Timer,” Retsu said. “MZD is the one who created pop’n World. If there are problems with the world, He’s the one to ask. He’s not always here, though, but we helped Him out with something a couple of years back. And I think He gave Mimi and Nyami their big sky boat thing to go around the world in.”

“Zeppelin.” Rinka had an idea. “How about we go over to Mimi and Nyami’s house? Maybe we can find something that will help us there. Mimi and Nyami know MZD the best, right? So...I mean, it’s not much, but we’re desperate at this point.”

“Good idea,” Fuga said, and they traveled by foot back to downtown pop’n Town. The sun was up, but nothing had changed since the previous day. Everything was still gray, just slightly easier to see. Natsuki followed the road ahead of her as she walked, looking down and trying not to pay attention to how dead everything was around her. Timer, meanwhile, shoved his hands in his pockets and listened to Rinka shoot the breeze.

Everybody knew where Mimi and Nyami lived downtown. It was a small house surrounded by a yard, further surrounded by the chaos of Main Street. Their door was never locked, so the six walked right in. It was very homey and well put together, charming, with a sitting room in front and a relaxation room in the back with a television set. The kitchen utensils had all been pink, now muted, and the upstairs had two bedrooms, one for Mimi and Nyami and one for a guest.

Timer couldn’t help but stick his head into Mimi and Nyami’s bedroom. They of course were not there, and everything was still grey, but the two twin beds had been pushed together. He checked the other room; both beds in that guest bedroom were separate and made. Had Nyami pushed the beds together? Who was sleeping over here with her? It made him sick to his stomach, only compounded by the fact that nobody had ate nearly anything that day.

Natsuki, meanwhile, went searching in the kitchen for a notepad, anything Mimi and Nyami may have used to write down information given to them by Myself. Of course, you and I both know that Mimi and Nyami hadn’t gotten a hold of Me for weeks, and they had tried to contact Tran by email with no luck. And no electricity meant no email. But Natsuki figured maybe she could find something to help.

She found a door and opened it, leading to a basement. She walked downstairs and found a studio, handy for recording shorter videos for Mimi and Nyami’s television shows and for online purposes. Sitting in the corner were several stuffed animals and a bunch of electronics.

“These are so cute,” Natsuki said as she looked at one -- then jumped away when one of the stuffed animals, still in color, _opened its eyes._ “Nyaaaaah!”

“Hello,” the stuffed animal chirped, then flew around Natsuki with the whirlygig on its head. “You’re not Nyami, but you are a cat.”

“You can talk?” Natsuki looked toward the stairs. “Hey, guys! You might wanna come see this!”

The others ran downstairs and took a look at the stuffed animal. “It looks more like a robot,” Rinka said. “What is that thing?”

“I am the Intellectual Navigator for Zeppelin Model 24-T, owned by Mimi and Nyami,” the robot stuffed animal thing chirped. “You can call me Navi! I have a full database of information on the pop’n World and can travel anywhere in a matter of seconds. My hard drive has all the information I need! But I only answer to Mimi and Nyami’s commands, unless they are simple.”

“Mimi and Nyami aren’t here right now.” Hiumi had an idea. “Navi -- you said you could travel anywhere in the world, right? How about to other worlds?”

“I cannot travel to another world without a proper coordinate, but in theory this could be possible.” Navi’s eyes glowed, and a light came out and scanned Hiumi, then the rest of the group. “Scan confirmed for Hiumi, Retsu, Rinka, Fuga, and Timer. One unknown individual has not been registered.”

“I’m Natsuki, and I’m new.”

“Did MZD send you?”

She paused. “Nobody knows who sent me. I just...kind of arrived here.”

“Then I will register you.” Navi beeped, then chirped and whirred for just a moment. “Registration complete. If you would like to go somewhere not in this world, I will need a coordinate first.”

Natsuki looked at the others. “Where would we go? Another coordinate? What’s that supposed to mean?”

“If I have an artifact from that world, I should be able to recreate the coordinate from scratch. It will take some time, though.”

“Does anybody have anything from Lapistoria?” Retsu asked. “I thought that world was closed a long time ago.”

Fuga shook his head.

“So Lapistoria’s out of the question,” Rinka thought out loud. “But we know there have to be more worlds. MZD has spoken of them before. But who do we know that might possibly be from another world?”

The group was silent, then Hiumi gasped. “I know! Follow me!”

 


	30. HYMN

Hiumi’s own house was by the school, not too far at all. It was a very modern addition and very well kept, with a minimalistic interior.

“I know I have it here somewhere, or at least I hope I do,” she said as she dug through her immaculate closet. “If it’s here, it’s gotta be in this pile somewhere.” She pushed aside several racks of now-grey clothing and dove into a pile of clothes.

“I never knew you had a pile of clothes at the bottom of your closet,” Rinka said. “It seems very...unHiumi.”

“Who doesn’t? Aha!” Hiumi pulled a blanket from the very bottom. “I have no clue if this will work or not, but we have to try!”

“Uh, that’s just a blanket,” Fuga muttered.

Hiumi grinned. “It’s not just a blanket. It’s somebody’s favorite blanket that he uses every time he sleeps over here!”

Rinka gasped. “You’re talking about Pastel-kun, right?”

“I am!” Hiumi hugged the blanket tight. “I miss him so much...but he always said he was from another world, too! One different than Lapistoria! Maybe Navi can use the blanket to find him and get us to wherever he is!”

“He used to see you all the time,” Rinka thought out loud. “He would always be over at your house, or at the school. He always wanted to be near you. But he would always be gone by the morning. He always said that he couldn’t stay the night and that he had to return to his home world. Do you think it will be the same for us?”

“Then we’ll return again and again to his world, until we have answers.” Natsuki turned and prodded Navi, then opened up the user’s manual that Mimi had left behind (admittedly under lots of papers and other books). If they were going to get Navi-kun to work without Mimi or Nyami’s voice, they had to be specific. “Navi-kun, we would like for you to build a portkey.”

Hiumi handed the blanket to Navi-kun, who scanned it. “There is enough DNA to create the proper coordinates!” he chirped.

Everybody cheered.

“Downloading additional information. No additional information available. No connection to the Internet. Approximate creation time with current resources: 4 hours, 27 minutes.”

Everybody sighed.

Hiumi went into her kitchen and found some bottled water for everybody, as the tap still wasn’t working and she could not make a proper hot tea. They sat in her kitchen and waited patiently...save for Timer, who sat outside. The school was nearby, cherry blossoms frozen in grey. He pulled his hat off his head and looked at it. He had wanted to not wear bunny ears as an effort to get over Nyami. Now, he couldn’t wear any other hat.

“Timer?” He looked up, and Natsuki was there. “Navi-kun should be done with the portkey soon. We should get going.”

He bit his lip. “I should stay here. I mean -- you guys all have magic powers, right? And I’m just a bunny, and even now I’m failing at that.” He twirled his white beret and laughed. “I’m just going to hold you guys back.”

Natsuki shook her head. “You’re coming with us. There’s nothing for you here. And I think everybody else would agree. As for that -- well, we’ll find something only you can do, okay?”

Hiumi came running out of the house. “It’s done! We shouldn’t waste any more time.”

Navi-kun floated in the air as the others surrounded it. “Processing portkey. Processing failed. There are not enough resources to initiate portkey.”

Everybody wilted. “Resources?” Hiumi asked.

“In order to initiate the jump, I must either be connected to a power source, be fully charged, or otherwise be connected to electricity.”

At the mention of the word _electricity_ , everybody turned toward Natsuki. “Do you think you could somehow help power Navi-kun?” Retsu asked.

Natsuki shrugged, but closed her eyes and tried to think of the power she had before, that had suddenly blossomed when the world had been threatened. No luck.

Timer paused. “Natsuki, sing. Anything.”

“Oh.” She took a deep breath.

_I’m here to search for my true self  
It’s all I’ve been waiting for…_

Natsuki finally started to glow, and she took Navi’s small hands in her paws. Navi recalculated. “Processing failed. There are not enough resources to initiate portkey.”

“Let’s try this.” And Hiumi held hands with Rinka, who held hands with Fuga, who held hands with Retsu. “Join with us,” Hiumi said, and Natsuki slipped between Retsu and Hiumi, taking their hands in her paws. She hummed to herself to keep her power going, and the others began to glow as well, Navi in the middle. The fan on Navi’s head began to spin faster.

“Is it enough power now?” Hiumi asked Navi-kun.

“Can you recalculate, please?” Natsuki asked in a way Navi would understand.

“Processing portkey. Processing failed. There are not enough resources to initiate portkey.”

Everybody sighed again and stopped glowing, breaking the circle. “This is really hard!” Rinka cried. “If we only had access to a bigger power source!”

“Let’s try again,” Hiumi said. “But this time, don’t hold back. Give it everything you’ve got.”

Everybody nodded, then Natsuki turned to Timer, who was still outside of the circle. “Get in here. We’re not leaving you behind.”

Timer stepped into the circle as everybody joined hands again. Within seconds, everybody was glowing, focused in their own power. Timer watched as Natsuki hummed to herself, Retsu burned bright, Hiumi glittered like new snow, Rinka chanted to herself in Chinese, and Fuga opened his mouth slightly to let the wind come in. These five, four chosen to protect the world before, a story he had never heard before...and now a new one joining their ranks. How could he stand to rank among them? How could he help save the world?

He reached out and held onto Navi, his hands meeting Navi’s smaller paws. And then, he found himself connected to their power, spinning, furious, unrestrained light. The power flowed not of him but through him and to Navi, and Navi’s eyes lit up. “Processing complete. Transport initiated.”

There was a huge flash of light, and then, Navi and the six were gone.

Starting then, the entire world of pop’n music was without life. And the adventure had truly begun...

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This marks the end of SYNESIRIS's first book. Book 2 will resume serialization in a couple of weeks.


End file.
